A Life Less Ordinary
by spazzyd
Summary: There's only room for one Samantha Carter. Spoilers from Season 8 onward. AU, SJ, Team.
1. Ascension

Darkness surrounded her, reminding her of the first few breaths of life she had ever taken as a new person, a better person. A stronger, faster, more powerful and aware person. When the bright light had reached her ship and the energy had seeped into her very core, she had been convinced that this existence was over. The darkness was cool and calm, welcoming and engulfing. For moments, hours, perhaps years, she originally had fought the darkness – until she had finally succumbed to its deep peace, albeit reluctantly.

Now, she felt the darkness recede, even if it was by small amounts. There was a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel, and she could feel the familiar tingling that accompanies warmth.

For the first time in much too long, she could feel herself breathing… Living.

She opened eyes that had once not existed, and immediately knew they were blue.

What must have been hands reached up and caressed a face with freckles on a nose she had come to appreciate, and caressed hair that had once been blonde. As she pulled the tips, she could see tints of black that soon blended back to blonde roots – a drastic change, but one that she decided she liked. She had always wondered what she'd look like with dark hair.

She smiled as her head pounded slightly. All of the knowledge she had acquired before her death had been overwhelming, suffocating, and sometimes painful. But she had adapted, as she was created to do, and she would do well with what she had gained.

Without even thinking about it, she knew that she was the only one left of her kind. She doubted she could create others, more brethren to do her bidding. It didn't matter. She didn't need them anymore, and even better, she didn't even need that absurd woman to do what Anubis had resorted to doing – using mindless trickery to gain ascension.

No, she had achieved ascension with the help of no one, save Daniel Jackson. And though Oma had revived him (again, the wretched woman), she would take care to eliminate him and her original for the last time. And, in the process, Oma would be destroyed. They would not cheat death again.

After all, there's only room for one Samantha Carter.


	2. A Discovery

The sun was shining high in the sky, but the temperature was cool. Surrounded by green plants and way too many mountains to count, Lt. Colonel Samantha Carter realized that the current mission at hand on PXY-6249 didn't excite her as much as she'd deluded herself. In fact, it was rather quiet. Almost too quiet.

Not that Sam was itching for trouble or anything. It was always the quiet missions that held the most surprises. Still…

"Well, this planet is boring," Sam muttered as she shifted the gun in her hands. "Even for me."

"Colonel Carter?" One of the scientists, Dr. Eric Bowens, had proved to be an incessantly high maintenance man, and Sam had borne the brunt of his enthusiasm more than once that day. As of now, she was at her wits' end, and she definitely didn't have the men she would have preferred to accompany her.

Teal'c and Daniel were on loan to SG-17 for the time being, and Mitchell was still recovering from the firefight with the Minosians. And she had been stuck with… this.

"Colonel Carter? Colonel Carter!"

"Dr. Bowens!" Sam cried, her hands in the air for protection. "What do you need?"

"I, uh… wanted you to see something, ma'am," he stuttered. "Do you have a minute?"

"Always, Doctor," Sam replied with a grin. "What's up?"

"You know those mineral and plant samples SG-5 gathered last week?"

Sam barely stopped herself from rolling her eyes. "Of course. That would be why we're here, right?"

"Right." Dr. Bowens smiled, and then forged on. "Well there seems to be absolutely no evidence that those minerals or plants ever even existed on this planet, ma'am."

Sam frowned. "I don't… follow you. Those samples have yet to be analyzed, but they were definitely taken from this area. Has your team had the opportunity to check the surrounding areas?"

"We've checked everything short of the lagoon, colonel," Dr. Bowens responded, and then immediately faltered. "Would you… like us… to check the lagoon, colonel?"

"No, that won't be necessary. Dr. Bowens, round up your team by the dome, and tell them that we're going to be packing up within the next half hour."

"Colonel, I don't think - "

"I'm going to make contact with General O'Neill before we make plans to leave the site for good," Sam continued, while jerking her thumb in the direction of the looming Stargate not too far away. "In the meantime, know that we have to be ready for a quick getaway." As she stared out into the distance, with the angry clouds rolling in from due west, her frown deepened. "I don't like this one bit."

To her relief, it hadn't been just her own paranoia that had instilled such a cold feeling of dread concerning this planet. Jack had readily agreed with her assessment of the situation, and had decided to bring the rest of the team home as well. He had also agreed that waiting to take SG-1, SG-3, and SG-5 to the planet in the next couple of days would be the best idea as well. So far, they were all at a loss as to how this was possible. SG-5 was adamant about the location where the mineral and plant deposits were found, yet SG-11 and its scientists were equally adamant about its absence. Sam was very close to developing a migraine.

"Can you believe those guys?" Dr. Thomas Hoffman demanded as he angrily shoved his equipment into his pack. "They were pretty much accusing us of not doing our jobs!"

"I'm not surprised by that," Dr. Bowens muttered as he zipped his up. "They've been that way since before I started working here."

"Don't you guys think it's possible that they're just as confused as we are about this situation?" Dr. Siobhan McAllister suggested as she hefted hers onto her shoulders. "I mean, I understand your frustration, but I don't think - "

"You wouldn't understand, Doctor," Dr. Hoffman snapped. "You're… biased. Uh, no offense."

"What is THAT supposed to mean?" Dr. McAllister frowned. "I'll have you know that - "

"In regards to those at the SGC who hold Ph., D's, you've dated at least half of the men on the base," Dr. Bowens added. "I'd have to say that your credibility is pretty slim, Doctor. I don't care how many areas in which you specialize."

Sam watched as McAllister approached Dr. Bowens with her fists clenched, and decided that this was the time to step in.

"Hey, hey, hey! Guys! Dr. McAllister…" Gently, she took Dr. McAllister by the shoulder and led her away from the others. "How old are we?"

"I certainly didn't ask to be ridiculed like that, Colonel Carter."

"Well, I'd have to say that your - "

"Dr. Hoffman!" Sam warned. "I think, if you were to decide to be QUIET right now, it'd be extremely prudent."

Hoffman's eyes widened in surprise, but he remained silence.

"Now, I did NOT come on this mission to play referee, OK? SG-5, I assure you, is not questioning your knowledge and expertise. And, doctors, Dr. McAllister's… er, life outside of the SGC is none of your concern. Are you almost done?"

"Yes, Colonel," McAllister answered, her expression haughtily turned away from the two males on her team. Taking a deep breath, Sam looked around the area, her hand still resting on the butt of her gun, and she frowned once more.

"Where's Dr. Landon?" she asked. Dr. Isaac Landon, the youngest of the group, had also proved to be a handful at times. He was quiet though, well-mannered, and more than willing to compromise. Because of this, it was a lot easier to forget about him.

"He went to gather the rest of his equipment a half an hour ago."

"I see…" Sam frowned at the doctors' flippant realization of their teammates' absence, and decided that she'd have to have a nice talk with General Landry concerning the team's morale. Frankly, she couldn't imagine SG-1 – or any other team, for that matter - ever surviving as long as it had if they had acted this way.

Resolutely, she turned away from them, and went in search of the missing team member. If they didn't care about him, that was just fine – but she wasn't gonna let ANYONE get into any trouble. Not this time.

* * *

In the darkness, she crept towards the Stargate. The villagers were so oblivious, and it was actually pretty humorous. They hadn't noticed how she had come into their village like a thief in the night. They didn't notice when she stole their clothes. They didn't notice when she killed the innocent shopkeeper for no reason – except for her further amusement.

To her, this village wasn't worth the time and energy the SGC was currently putting into it. She had watched Teal'c and Daniel come through the Stargate earlier that afternoon alongside four other SGC members. She didn't recognize the others, and she definitely didn't know what their reasons for visiting this particular planet were. She knew that the chances of them picking the same planet were rather slim, but she didn't worry about it. She momentarily wondered if Oma was already intervening, but tried not to think about. Intervention at this time would surely ruin her plans.

She did, however, wonder where she was. For a moment, she wondered if her original had already been destroyed, killed in battle. Or perhaps she had left the SGC to be with Pete, a man she could never fully love – not like him. Perhaps the struggle was too much for her weak, human psyche. Perhaps she had simply given up. It would make the job currently at hand that much easier, but that much more obnoxious. She was a fighter in spirit, even as a pathetic human, and the fight they would surely endure before her human counterpart died would be the most satisfying thing that would ever happen to her.

She scoffed at the thought.

If anyone was in need of some serious therapy, it was her.

The Stargate was just three miles away now. Earlier that evening, she had waited until Daniel and two other SGC members disappeared through the Stargate, presumably back to Earth. She could only hope that they wouldn't choose now to come back. Once she was at the Stargate, nothing would be able to stop her. She had many different tasks that she had left to carry out, and not much time before The Others would realize their newest member's presence.

As much as she liked to think of those like Oma as banal morons with more power than they could ever utilize, she knew that the lazy, Ancient cronies would suddenly find her presence disturbing. They had barely lifted a finger when Anubis had almost destroyed the galaxy, and yet they had still been terrified, like little children. She imagined how they would respond should she pull stunts that would make even Anubis look like the pitiful weakling he was. She grinned. This was going to be fun…

Suddenly, something snapped behind her. Sharply, she turned around, ready to defend herself by any means necessary, when she was suddenly attacked from the side. Her first instinct was to quickly end this person's life – as she knew she easily could – however, she recognized this body. Instantly, she knew to take advantage of a perfect situation. She would never have an opportunity like this again. It was all she could do to withhold a chuckle.

"Please," she whimpered quietly. "Please let me go."

Teal'c glanced down at the small figure below him and frowned. Had he heard correctly? If he was not mistaken, that voice belonged to Colonel Carter. But that could not be. Colonel Carter was off-world with another team. Teal'c, in his haste and confusion, almost ripped the hood off of this person immediately. Slowly, he took a step back and held her at arms' length, waiting as the figure lifted the hood off of her face.

"Teal'c?" she whispered. With a start, Teal'c let go of her shoulders and took a giant step back. His frown deepened with growing confusion.

"Colonel Carter?"

"What?" She feigned confusion. "Uh, s-sort of… I guess."

"What are you doing here?"

"The mirror, Teal'c," she whimpered softly. "The mirror."

That was all Teal'c needed to hear.


	3. Or Two

"Dr. Landon!" Sam called as she trekked through the forest. The foliage wasn't as dense as it most likely normally got – according to Dr. Bowens – but it was still pretty thick. "Dr. Landon!" Frustrated, she tried the radio one more time. "Dr. Landon, this is Colonel Carter. Come in."

Silence.

"If you cannot vocally respond, please tap the receiver twice."

Silence.

It was all Sam could do to keep from swearing. As she rounded the next bend, she decided that this was the last time she'd be babysitting ANY scientists for a while. She now completely understood how Jack had felt all of those years, and she was NOT going to put up with it again – at least, that's what she hoped. She wasn't really prepared to tell General Landry that.

"Amazing!"

Sam jumped at the sound of the familiar voice, her hands still on her gun.

"Landon? Dr. Landon?"

"Colonel Carter!"

Sam turned around once more, this time ready and willing to shoot – but for completely different reasons. One of which involved tossing the young scientist into a nearby bog.

"Dr. Landon," she stated calmly, her gun still trained in his direction. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, Colonel Carter. How are you?"

"Peachy." Sam frowned at her own use of the familiar phrase, but kept her stance combative. "Where've you been, Doctor?"

"That's just what I wanted to tell you! I found something that I think you should see." When he motioned to grab her elbow, Sam shook it away and smiled.

"Oh, no, doctor," Sam began with a shake of her head. "You just… point me in the right direction."

"O… K… Colonel?" Dr. Landon glanced wearily at her gun as she slowly set it at her side.

"Yes, Doctor?"

"Are you alright?"

Sam smiled saccharinely, her hand resting comfortably on the firearm's butt. "I'm fine. Please. Lead the way."

"Absolutely. Now, I just thought that you should know that this was completely on accident. I was packing my equipment, when suddenly energy readings started spiking right… here." Jovially, he jumped into the center of a ring full of leaves and grinned like a kid at Christmas.

"What did that mean?"

"Well, I found out that I couldn't contact any of you on radio…"

"Ah… And?"

"It meant that I… Well, that maybe we HAD found something cool enough to take back to the SGC. I mean, I know it's been a while, and the pressure's on our teams more than it has been in recent years, but -"

"'Cool enough?'" Sam repeated. The young scientist nodded sheepishly and pushed his hair out of his face.

"I know it's not what we were looking for, but - "

"What is IT, Doctor ?" Sam insisted.

"What? Oh! Oh… Yeah, well, what I found was a crystal."

"A crystal."

"A crystal that has the exact same readings as the ZPM that was found in Egypt. It's not the same shape, size or color, but it appears to be fully charged."

Sam frowned.

"Really?"

Dr. Landon nodded, his eyes wide with excitement. "Yes."

"Where is it?"

"I left it where I found it, because I didn't know if it was booby trapped or anything."

"Yeah, that would be bad," Sam answered nonchalantly as she followed him to a nook not too far away. "Did you touch it at all?"

Quietly, the doctor continued heading to the crystal. When he turned around, he had guilt written all over his face.

"I don't blame you for touching it," Sam answered softly. "If we start getting chased by giant insects or huge rocks, I'll cause you bodily harm. Otherwise…"

"Yes, ma'am," Isaac answered with a grin, and continued to lead the way. "Well… Here it is." Immediately, he moved the tree branches out of the way for Sam, revealing a greenish-bluish-aqua crystal, roughly three inches long and an inch in diameter.

She couldn't imagine what it did, but she was sure she didn't want to touch it - almost. Sometimes, despite what Colonel Carter knew, Dr. Carter wanted to come out and play. There were times when she wondered if she had dual personalities. With a self-deprecating sigh, Sam checked the readings over Isaac's shoulder and nodded in agreement.

"Everything's exactly the same," she noted.

"Everything."

"Well, I guess we WILL have something to bring home after all."

* * *

Jack stood in the Control Room, preparing to hear back from Carter and the rest of the team, and ready to call it a night. Glancing at his watch – it was 11:06 pm – he realized that he hadn't been home in days. General Landry had been kind enough to allow him these small luxuries, but he knew that Landry probably thought he was a nut job. As it was, Jack had lucked out. His trip back to Colorado Springs had coincided perfectly with a meeting that Landry had with the Joint Chiefs in Washington. Jack had jumped at the chance of playing interim-CO of the base in Landry's place.

He knew that Carter had been reluctant to take the team out on this cake mission, but had relented anyway, without argument. He wondered if she was just looking for a break, or if she figured arguing with General Landry would be pointless. Landry appreciated Carter just as much as the next general, but he was still pretty old school, so to speak.

Still, he was a good guy, rough around the edges like Hammond had been during those first few years, and like Jack had been sometimes. Really, Landry was a great pick, if he did say so himself. Jack couldn't help but feel a bit nostalgic, though, standing up in the Control Room like he owned the place. He hadn't been actually inside the SGC in months.

"Uh, sir?" Walter called from his spot near the console.

"Yes, Walter?"

"You said to bring it to your attention if you looked like you're, uh… out of it."

"Oh, right. Yes. Thank you, Walter."

"Anytime, sir."

Promptly, the Stargate began to spin, reminding Jack that he did have some odd business to take care of with Carter and the mineral/plant samples. What the heck had been wrong there? No traces anywhere? Weird. He was so not up to dealing with alien plant/mineral pirates. It just didn't seem appealing, and he was definitely out of practice. Six months as Head of Homeworld Security, and Jack had other things on his mind. Where bunting decisions had gone, dinner dates with schmoozy-schmoozes on Capital Hill had come. He was still debating which was worse. Walter had a mean sense of color coordination and finesse that his new aide just did not possess.

"Jack?" Daniel asked as he walked into the Control Room. "Is that Sam?"

"Supposedly," Jack answered. "You're up late."

"Yeah, well, I keep thinking about what Teal'c and I learned at the village this afternoon."

"You mean the murder of that store owner?"

"Yeah… It was pretty odd. The leader of the village said that there's been a feeling of unrest amongst the villagers for a few days now. I mean, before this the village hadn't had any violent crimes committed in 25 years - not even assault of any kind."

"Weird," Jack commented. "Not even a brawl?"

"Receiving SG-17's IDC, sir," Walter announced.

"SG-17?" Jack asked, turning to Daniel. "Teal'c need you to grab something for him?"

Daniel held up his book of translations and shook his head.

"No video games?" Jack insisted. "DVDs?"

"O'Neill," Teal'c voice boomed over the speakers.

"Yeah, Teal'c," Jack responded. "Talk to me."

"I have just found Colonel Carter," Teal'c said bluntly. He really wasn't sure how else he was supposed to tell O'Neill anyway, so that seemed like a good enough tactic to choose. Jack shot Daniel an incredulous look, before leaning over the microphone once more.

"Come again?"

"I have found a woman who claims to be Colonel Carter. She claims to have come through the Quantum Mirror - from another reality."

The looks on Daniel's and Jack's face were priceless.

"I, uh, thought we were done with those," Daniel quipped. Jack rolled his eyes.

"Teal'c," Jack warned. "I know you're not ever really good in the wisecracking department, but this had better be a joke."

"I am unsure. She has been tortured, that much is clear. She also appears to be wearing clothes that were stolen from the nearby village."

"Teal'c?" Daniel asked as he practically shoved Jack out of the way. "Do you know how long she's

been there?"

"She has been here since this morning, Daniel Jackson. Though I understand what you are asking."

Jack turned to Daniel and frowned. "What are you asking?"

"A villager was murdered late last night." Daniel shrugged. "It just seems like much more than a coincidence."

Jack nodded, duly noting that observation. When he turned back to the microphone, he was at a loss.

Decisions, decisions.

"O'Neill… I believe she is in need of medical attention, if you are willing to permit asylum."

"OK, OK, Teal'c," Jack cried. "I get it."

When he turned to Daniel, he received no help, as Daniel seemed just as confused.

"You're the General, Jack," Daniel reminded him with a very Daniel-like smirk.

"Yeah, thanks…" He turned to Walter, who looked completely neutral, before clearing his throat and turning to Daniel again. "T, if she's as sick as you say, the likelihood of her murdering a villager is slim, correct?"

"Indeed, O'Neill."

"It could just be a coincidence, right?"

Daniel looked doubtful, but hopeful nevertheless.

"I am unsure, O'Neill."

"Come on. This is Carter we're talking about. An injured Carter."

"Not ours, Jack," Daniel said slowly. "But I think she deserves the benefit of the doubt."

"Teal'c? Bring… Uh… Bring this Carter through the Gate as soon as possible. We'll have a medical team awaiting on standby. Proceed with caution."

"Understood, O'Neill. Colonel Carter and I are approximately half an hour away from the Stargate and will join Colonel Ellis, Major Wells, and Captain Wertz before we return to the SGC. Teal'c out."

The wormhole disengaged, leaving Jack feeling a lot more apprehensive than he had when the night began. It would be a half an hour before Teal'c and this… other Carter… got to the Stargate. At that time, he would have no choice but to follow through with his plans. If she was a friend - great. If she was a foe – they'd survive. A Carter from another reality had always proven to be harmless, if not extremely helpful in getting the job done for them. He kinda doubted she had done anything to that villager, but was still pretty anxious about the whole thing. It wasn't wholly out of the realm of possibility, after all. Theoretically…

They had a procedure for this anyway, he told himself. Everything would be fine.

But, he began to ask himself, how many times had great plans gone horribly wrong? Could he afford the risk? General Hammond had taken many risks in the past, and they had all (mostly) turned out OK in the end. Could he expect the same luck? Should he?

He supposed he'd find out in time – assuming he was given the chance.

If worse came to worse, well… Jack knew that Landry would be offering no more free trips to Cheyenne Mountain in the future.

* * *

The next time the Stargate engaged, it was Carter calling in to tell him that one of the doctors had found some "great discovery," and that they'd like to run some tests. His eyes characteristically glazed over after "energy," mostly out of habit, so he wasn't 100 sure why Carter had made the call.

Jack was at a temporary loss, though. How had it gone from being "very important that they get home" to "very important that they stay" in one hour's time? He had reluctantly agreed, but had given her a three-hour limit. He trusted her implicitly, and – at times – tended to put unreasonable amounts of pressure upon her abilities, he knew. Still, she had been grateful for the chance to figure out "The Crystal."

He'd also conveniently forgotten to tell her that Teal'c was about to bring "her" home from his own mission. Details like these could remain unknown for as long as he wished. He was a General, after all.

When Teal'c and the rest of SG-17 reached the Stargate with Other Carter in tow, it was 12:15 am. They had made good time, according to Teal'c, considering an amazing downpour had started 15 minutes into their trip. With Daniel at his side, Jack was more than sure that he'd like to ask SOMEONE for advice. Unfortunately, Daniel was just as worried as he was, and Carter was tied up at the moment. Landry had been unreachable.

Twenty-five trained SFs stood at the base of the ramp, greeting Teal'c and the others like the dutiful soldiers they were. Instead of standing down upon SG-17's arrival, they stayed on alert – per Jack's orders.

She certainly looked like Carter. Stumbling down the ramp, with the help of Teal'c and Captain Peter Wertz, she looked just like Carter – but different. She definitely looked ill or injured, but she seemed afraid to make eye contact.

Again, Jack began to question his decision. Had he done the right thing by bringing her here?

As he and Daniel made their way through the SFs to Teal'c, Captain Wertz and Colonel Vincent Ellis, this Carter shrunk away from them. Teal'c shot Jack a knowing look and shook his head warningly.

"Sam?" Daniel asked quietly. "Is that you?"

She nodded in response, only managing to dig her hands further into the material of Teal'c's uniform, eliciting a small frown from Jack.

"Teal'c," Jack began, "it looks like you've got a fan. Why don't you escort her to the infirmary and meet Daniel and me in my office as soon as possible, OK?"

Teal'c bowed in the affirmative, and led the woman in question to the infirmary, six armed SFs following closely behind.

Jack was left with yet another feeling of apprehension. He couldn't fully explain it, but something about that woman sent off all kinds of alarms.

She had nodded in response to one of Daniel's questions. She had clung to Teal'c like he was her lifeline. But never once had she glanced in his direction.

He told himself that he wasn't jealous, that he had no reason to be. Not only was this not THEIR Carter, but this woman looked terrified. Of course she'd be weary of certain people. Maybe he wasn't even in the reality that she was from. Stranger things had happened.

Still, he couldn't deny the niggling feeling that rose from deep within his stomach.

Never before had Jack feared a decision he'd made as much as he did now.

* * *

She was soaked to the skin, and angrily cursed the human form she had taken. Because she was smaller than the four men, and not dressed like them, the rain had felt that much harsher. Captain Wertz had awkwardly offered her his hat, and had blushed deeply when she kindly declined. Fifteen minutes into their trip, she accepted the jacket he offered. It helped her arms and chest somewhat, but her hands were still like ice, reminding her of nine years before, of a memory that was hers, but an experience that was not. Vaguely, she remembered O'Neill complaining about water in his ears many years ago. These memories would keep her in check, keep her focused, keep her Sam. The more like Sam she was, the better her chances of survival.

Still, she began to doubt the wisdom in retaking a semi-human form. She wasn't quite human, wasn't quite ascended. But she still looked better than Anubis.

The walk with Teal'c had been uneventful, but more interesting than she had anticipated. She had underestimated her own power until she had taken the trek with Teal'c. Her ability to act just like her original, complete with the "drowned rat" look, had kept Teal'c dutifully at her side, and had been worthy of an Oscar. This proved that her original and Teal'c had indeed grown even closer than the last time she remembered being with him.

He did not speak, but his quiet presence warmed her in places she had once considered untouchable. It disturbed her as much as it thrilled her. A new challenge, a new discovery. She would use this to her advantage. There had been many times in the past when Teal'c had held a weapon aimed at her because she was a threat to Earth and to the SGC. Now, she was sure that he could hold the weapon on her, but doubted that he would ever be able to fire it without hesitation.

Two doctors had examined her while six SFs stood at the opposite side of the room. She hid a smile as she recognized one of the men from the Alpha Site so long ago. His face seemed emotionless, but she had a feeling that he had never looked at her original the same way again. She could sense his fear, almost feel his heart rate increase when he noticed that she was staring at him. Her fingertips twitched with anticipation as she pondered how she could terrify this man further.

The doctors had been gone for ten minutes, but she knew that they were equally concerned. No one, she knew, would take kindly to any other version of her original, and she was no exception. Still, she had complete control of her body, giving the doctors the appearance of a weathered, tired and abused woman, both inside and out. Their instincts and training would make it impossible for them to dismiss her, despite their fears.

"We're going to assign you your own quarters, Ms. Carter," one doctor stated with a fake smile as he walked back into the room.

She smiled back, weakly and cautiously.

"You are a bit dehydrated, but we think you'll be fine with some rest," the second added. "General O'Neill would like to speak with you in the briefing room before you go."

"Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you, very much."

Slowly she stood up and followed the two physicians out of the infirmary, flanked on all sides by SFs. Everyone noticed the slow stagger to her stride. No one saw the smug look of victory in her eyes.


	4. Apprehension and Deception

Jack paced Landry's office for the fifteenth time that minute, and briefly wondered if he was going insane. It wouldn't be the first time. A plate covered in condiments came to mind.

"They did say she was who she said she was, Jack," Daniel said quietly.

Jack stopped in his tracks and frowned.

"I know that Daniel," Jack said harshly. "I still don't feel right about it."

"Is it the nature of her discovery which concerns you, O'Neill?" Teal'c inquired. Jack shot Teal'c a look and rolled his eyes in the affirmative.

"Dr. Lam says it's impossible for her to have killed that villager, Jack," Daniel stated. "That villager was killed by strangulation. The murderer used his or her own body to kill him. And that shopkeeper outweighed Sam by at least a couple hundred pounds. Sam's strong, but not that strong."

"We're not talking about Carter, Daniel. We're talking about her."

"Uh…" Daniel blinked. "What's the difference?"

"One Colonel Carter can be trusted; the other's allegiance remains to be proven," Teal'c answered.

Not for the first time, Jack thanked God for Teal'c.

"Exactly!"

"I don't understand, guys. She says she's from another universe. She pinpointed the area where she found the quantum mirror on an aerial map of PZY-6203. The doctors agree that she retained some kind of physical torture within the past week or so."

Teal'c and Jack remained silent.

Daniel sighed in frustration. "What about the three alternate universes we've come in contact with before? What about them? I've never met any murderers amongst the Sam counterparts, have you?"

Teal'c sent Jack a look, but Jack kept his eyes glued to the floor.

Daniel tiredly rubbed his eyes with his hands, feeling outnumbered by the two men standing before him. Not for the first time, he felt like the odd man out with these two. Daniel had grown cautious over the past few years, but he was not completely jaded. Not completely. Jack and Teal'c had always been this way, and it seemed like nothing would change their minds in certain circumstances.

Daniel bit back an agitated groan as he stuck his hands in his pockets. "Look, out of any of us, I would know what it's like to be duped by someone with Sam's intellect, to be…" Daniel choked back the emotion he knew was bubbling to the surface and sighed. "To be violated by someone with Sam's face. I know what it's like…"

That got Teal'c's and Jack's attention. Not that either of them had forgotten, but it had been somewhat of a silent agreement on all of their parts to never discuss it again. And all three men knew that Sam had been riddled with guilt over the whole thing.

"We will not be able to confirm the mirror's presence until the storm withdraws and a team is sent to the planet," Teal'c said logically.

Jack didn't bother saying anything. He knew that his friends knew where he stood.

"Well," Daniel muttered, as he looked out into the briefing room, "it looks like it's show time, either way."

Jack and Teal'c followed his gaze, as Other Carter was escorted into the briefing room with an SGC battalion, along with Dr. Lam and Dr. Blane.

All three men exhaled a collective sigh of dismay and exhaustion.

It was show time, indeed.

"It's useless," Dr. Bowens said irritably. "Completely useless."

"Well, I wouldn't say that," Dr. McAllister supposed softly. "It makes a great paperweight, I'm sure."

Dr. Hoffman scoffed at that comment and shot Dr. Landon a snide look. "Great work, Kid. General Landry will love it."

Dr. Landon didn't respond to the not-so-gentle dig, but kept his eyes riveted to the crystal.

Bowens idly slapped at a mosquito on his neck, and scratched his arm.

After a moment, Landon looked up from his finding, his eyes still enormously wide with anticipation. Sam winced at the once-familiar look of enthusiasm. For a moment, she was taken back to a time not too long ago, yet still so far away. She'd been like Dr. Landon once. And so had Daniel. All that changed now.

Between life and death, lies and broken promises, enthusiasm was something that was reserved for the recruits, or "noobs," as Teal'c fondly called them. As it stood, the only thing the experienced members of the SGC could rely on was their experience and their resolve; their loyalty and their unity.

Sam held Landon's gaze for a moment longer. No, she thought, it was still good to have a couple of Dr. Landons around to remind them why they were all still in it. Something good had to come out of all of this, or what the Hell was she here for?

"This is important. Right Colonel Carter?" Landon asked eagerly. "I mean, surely it's good for something, right?"

"Well…" Sam paused. "I think it's definitely worth taking back, of course. You can better analyze its properties in the comfort of your own labs."

"But it's useless," Bowens insisted. "I don't think we could power the Stargate to the Pegasus Galaxy for even ten seconds, let alone 38 minutes."

"And THAT doesn't make sense, considering it's giving off the precise energy signatures of a ZPM," McAllister countered.

"Then it won't hurt to bring it home, will it?" Sam asked cheekily. "We can discuss what the crystal can and CAN'T do back at the SGC, right?"

"Absolutely," Landon shouted as he stood up to his full height, causing everyone else to jump slightly. "This could be just what we're looking for, and we don't even know it! We can't discount it before we can properly analyze it, can we?"

"No, Kid," Hoffman muttered gruffly, "which is why the colonel here is ordering us to bring it back, eh?"

Landon frowned slightly and turned to Sam.

"Am I wrong in thinking that this is worth more than it looks like at face value?"

"No," Sam said honestly. "In the nine years that I've been here I've learned that face value tends to mean very little in the grand scheme of things. Let's move out."

* * *

"You said that you came from the quantum mirror on PZY-6203, right?" Daniel confirmed.

She nodded slowly, her eyes focused on a light speck on the table. She wanted to act nervous, but she found that she wasn't really acting. For the first time in days, she actually felt insecure. Neither Teal'c nor O'Neill had spoken since she'd entered the briefing room, but Jackson seemed to be running the show with vigor, almost as if he wanted to prove something to the other two.

"The quantum mirror was in one of the many caves north of the village. I tried to find something to cover it, to… keep them from coming through. But…" Her voice broke, and she found that she was also riveted by her own story – as riveted as O'Neill and Teal'c now were. "He did…"

"Who did?" Daniel asked gently.

"An SGC member from my reality." She swallowed softly and closed her eyes against the threatening tears. "General… O'Neill…"

"Did he come through to help you?" Daniel asked, but was immediately interrupted as klaxons blared all over the base.

"Unscheduled Off-World Activation," Walter's voice boomed through the base's systems.

Jack rolled his eyes, and Daniel looked helplessly back and forth between him and Teal'c.

Teal'c remained silent, but his eyes were as confused as Daniel's.

One more second passed before Jack stood up.

"Daniel, Teal'c, stay here with…" Jack paused and sighed. "That's probably Carter."

Not waiting for a response, Jack turned to go.

"The Samantha Carter from this reality," she began. "She's alive?"

Jack froze and stiffly turned around. "Yes. She is."

* * *

He hadn't intended to seem so cold, but he couldn't help but notice her shrink back in fear, and he kicked himself. He wasn't sure what his alternate counterpart had done to this woman, but it suddenly explained why she had treated him the way that she had.

He had been the enemy.

By the time Jack reached the Control Room, Sam was already there giving orders to several officers. SG-11 was behind her, with three of the members looking suspiciously bored.

"Carter? What's up?"

"This is what we found on PXY-6249, sir," Sam answered as she held out the blue crystal in her hands. "Actually, to be more specific, it was Dr. Landon who discovered it."

Jack stopped in his tracks and stared at the thing for a long time before looking up again at Sam. "What is it?"

"Sir?" Sam caught that moment's hesitation easily.

Jack shook his head, as if ridding himself of a bad dream. "I thought I recognized it... What is it?"

"Well… It looks to be very similar to a ZPM."

"Really?" Jack's eyebrows raised and he couldn't help but grin. "Well, that's great."

"Except it's useless," Dr. Bowens added from behind Sam.

Jack turned to the guy, tried to figure out what his name was, and gave up. Finally, he questioningly turned back to Sam. "Carter?"

"As Dr. Bowens has been so quick to point out, it's debatable as to whether or not we'd be able to get this crystal to connect a wormhole between Earth and anything even close to the Pegasus Galaxy, for any considerable length of time. However, Drs. Landon and McAllister here are willing to do some additional tests to see if the energy can be channeled with an additional conduit."

"Sounds great," Jack answered blankly and turned to Bowens and Hoffman. "What about you two? You have something better to do?"

"Well, no, sir," Hoffman said quickly. "You see, in my professional opinion it seems like a bit of a moot point. If it failed the first test, why would it pass the others?"

"In your 'professional opinion?'" Jack repeated, finger quotes and all. Hoffman nodded. "Well that's just fantastic, er…"

"Uh, Dr. Hoffman, sir."

"Dr. Hoffman… However, I tend to implicitly trust Colonel Carter's professional opinion over many, many, MANY other people – hordes of them. And YOU just happen to be one of those people. Understood?"

Hoffman turned an odd shade of magenta and swallowed. "Yes, sir!"

"So, what I want you to do is follow Dr. Landon and Dr. McAllister's lead and study what could possibly be a power source that is comparable to our non-existent ZPMs, OK?"

"Yes, sir!"

"You, too, Boone."

"Uh, Bowens."

"Whatever."

With that, the four members of SG-11 were gone. Walter was stifling a laugh, as were many other officers. Sam was silent, but she was eyeing him with a look that he knew all too well.

"How's Mitchell, sir?"

"He's good," Jack answered with a scowl. "He actually wants to get in on all of the excitement as soon as possible."

"Great," Sam said, but she was still staring at him oddly.

"What?" Jack asked as he headed up to the briefing room.

"Something's wrong," Sam responded sagely.

Jack swallowed and cleared his throat.

"That obvious, eh?"

"Only to the ones who know you best," Sam answered quietly.

Jack stopped halfway up the stairs and smiled wanly. "Yeah, well, there's something you should know."

"What's going on, sir?"

"Teal'c and SG-17 found someone on PZY-6203."

"Yes?" Sam pressed.

"She claims to be you… from another reality."

Sam frowned. "What? How? She didn't arrive in a Puddle Jumper, did she?"

"A Puddle Jumper? Oh, no… No, she did it the old-fashioned way, Carter. She traveled right through a quantum mirror."

"A mirror? You're kidding! Where? Why?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa… Daniel's trying to figure that out now. She's been subdued since she got here. Apparently, she didn't have such a good experience with the me on the other side."

"I see." Sam frowned and continued to stare at Jack with a critical eye. "You don't believe her?"

"I didn't… After the Replicators, I'm not sure what to believe anymore."

"But the Replicators are gone, sir."

"That they are, Carter," Jack agreed with a nod. "And, if her story checks out with the location of the quantum mirror, I'll be even more convinced."

"Until then, you've attached a squadron of trigger-happy SFs on her," Sam finished.

"Right." Jack continued up the stairs until he reached the door and turned around. "Ready?"

"To meet another version of me?" Sam asked with a wry grin. "Oh, yeah. Thanks, but after nine years, it's like old hat."

"Indeed it is, Carter. Indeed it is."

* * *

She could hear them talking from the control room and knew that her original would be difficult to crack. She didn't need to worry about who this Mitchell person was, but it did spark a level of curiosity in her. Who could he be?

Her original sounded different, felt different, seemed different. She could sense all of this about her from the few moments her original had been on Earth.

Their fight would be a challenge, but it would be worth it.

In the end, she'd be a better being for it.

In the end, she would have all she could possibly want and more.

"I understand this is difficult for you," Daniel began softly. "But we need to know what the General O'Neill from your reality did to you."

She took a deep breath and nodded, albeit slowly, as her original and O'Neill walked in and sat down next to Teal'c on the other side of the table.

"He went on a mission with our team, SG-1, six months ago. As usual, Daniel made first contact with the people of Elat Llat. General O'Neill went with him, as had been the norm when he had been the CO of our team. Right after they met the people of Elat Llat, Daniel remembered a bright light, but nothing else. When he woke up, he was back in front of the Stargate, and General O'Neill was gone. He contacted us – Teal'c and myself – and we got there as soon as we could, but… it was too late. A search party was sent soon after, but it came up with nothing. To top it off, the people of Elat Llat had apparently never existed."

Daniel leaned forward in his chair, unable to contain his curiosity.

"Three months ago… General O'Neill appeared in my home… He was deathly pale, thin, and enraged. He… attacked me and would have killed me… I shot him." She sighed."I shot him twice. They weren't meant to kill him, but they didn't affect him either. He came at me again, only with much more force. Three more shots stopped him from… stabbing me to death, but not before…"

She stopped for a moment, knowing that the information would suffice in suggesting what she hoped they would infer. After a beat of silence, she forged on.

"The general was taken to the SGC. They followed protocol and checked for any kinds of alien contagions, perhaps an entity of some kind. They found nothing. Eight days after he was admitted, I was left alone with him. I wanted to see him one – one last time… They didn't expect him to make it… But he did. He woke up… He… told me that he had a job for me, that it involved a quantum mirror SG-8 had found a few days before…"

"What kind of job?" Daniel asked quietly.

"He didn't specify. It was as if the past few days had never happened. He was up and – and – out of the bed as if nothing had happened. He… held me at gunpoint until we got to the Stargate. Even now, I don't know how he did it, but he got us through. To PZV-8549…"

All eyes went to Carter for clarification or confirmation of their own designation of such a planet, but she simply shrugged nonchalantly. She was as clueless as they were and had never heard of the name. They hadn't gotten that far down their list of planets, as far as she was concerned.

The Other Carter wasted no time in continuing her story. Something was wrong. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing on end, and her fingertips were tingling.

Oma.

Oma had found her.

Oma was coming.

Oma was planning something.

Something big.

"After we went through the mirror, he led me to a nearby village," she persisted hastily. "He said that there was something I needed to see." She turned to Sam this time, her eyes suddenly wide. "He said that we had to find a crystal…"

Sam's eyes were incredibly close to widening beyond their capacity, but she kept her cool. Jack looked just as controlled, but she knew he was thinking the same thing. A crystal?

Interesting…

"The general was just about to tell me what he wanted me to do, when a man stopped us on the road, asking us if we needed help. It was late at night, and the general was… obviously, he wasn't himself. You have to understand that the general had never behaved this way. Ever." She swallowed. "He killed the man without a second thought, broke into a nearby store, and hid him behind the counter."

"What did you do?" Daniel asked, his hands clasped tightly with relief. She hadn't killed the shopkeeper! Of course! Jack was special ops trained. He could take down the Hulk with both hands, if given the element of surprise!

"I followed him back to the caves… I wasn't sure how, but I knew that I had to… kill him." She swallowed again, only this time it was to suppress her desire to smile. Yes, this final part of the story had to be just right. "When we got back to the quantum mirror, he began to shoot it. I tried to tell him that it wouldn't work, that the mirror was indestructible." She sighed and smiled mirthlessly. "He knew I was lying.

"But, in his eagerness to destroy the mirror, he wasn't paying attention. I didn't expect such an easy shot, but I was able to knock him unconscious with one of the larger rocks nearby. He had a zat… he had forgotten where he'd put it, but I remembered. I - I remembered. I zatted him once… twice… three times… And, I… headed for the Gate as fast as I could."

She looked into the eyes of her original, Jack, Teal'c, and Daniel. She received quite mixed reactions to her tale.

O'Neill looked painfully emotionless, but she could tell that he was a storm of emotions inside.

Daniel was clearly troubled, not bothering to hide his sincere sympathy, which she expected.

Teal'c was stoic, but his eyes roamed to O'Neill, before he too expressed deep sympathy.

Her original looked detached, completely unaffected by what she'd heard, and the picture of emptiness. This, she did not expect. This, she did not anticipate.

Her original was usually an open book, even in all her years of service. For the most part, it was easy to tell what she was thinking, what she was feeling. The eyes normally said it all.

But not this time.

The first time she had come in contact with her original, it had taken much of her energy to control her expressions.

Her original was different now. She looked harder, cooler, more in control than she'd ever been.

Wondering if it was an act, she ventured to toy with her original.

"I'm sure you are familiar with entropic cascade failure," she said calmly.

"Yes," her original stated coolly. "I am."

She was not the only one confused by her original's response. Jackson was glaring at her, silently asking her what she was doing. Teal'c had turned to her, but had respectfully looked away. O'Neill did not look away from her own eyes, a fact that delighted her more than words could express.

She had won him over, had won Jackson over the moment she spoke to him.

Teal'c was close.

Her original was… a mystery.

* * *

Ten minutes later, she demurely followed Daniel, Teal'c, and several SFs to her holding cell. She knew that the guards were a permanent attachment, one that she should get used to. However, she didn't worry. There were very few things she _couldn't_ do, guards or no. Briefly, she wondered where her original and Jack had gone, but it didn't really matter. They were close to believing her story. So close.

"Here are your quarters, Dr. Carter," Daniel said as he motioned to her room. She smiled lightly and nodded.

"Please contact us, if you need assistance, Dr. Carter," Teal'c intoned.

She smiled again.

Of course.

"Please," she began softly. "Please call me, Sam."

She expected Daniel to falter, but he managed to gain control relatively quickly. Teal'c had not moved a muscle.

"I just… I really miss you guys… My version of you guys." She made sure to lean into both of them, just as she knew her original did at times, and she placed a hand on both of their arms before continuing. "I didn't really get a chance to say good-bye."

"Everything will be rectified," Teal'c assured, though it was clear that he was biting back any sort of reference to her name. She nodded, seemingly satisfied.

"Thank you. I know you'll do all that you can."

"After we send a team to the planet to locate the quantum mirror, a team will work on reconscruting it. We should have you home in no time," Daniel agreed. "No time at all."

"I have faith in you," she whispered. "Thanks again."With that, she let herself into her quarters and closed the door.

Teal'c turned to Daniel and raised an eyebrow in consternation. The guards took their cue to stand on either side of the door, and Daniel moved out of their way. By the time he registered that Teal'c had moved as well, Teal'c was already down the hall.

"Hey!" Daniel called as he ran to catch up. "What are you thinking about?"

"I am not thinking of anything, Daniel Jackson," Teal'c lied.

"Yeah, right, Teal'c. What do you think? You're still skeptical, aren't you?" Daniel demanded as he punched the button on the elevator.

"I am," Teal'c admitted. "A year ago, a woman claiming to be of the same character as Colonel Samantha Carter was trusted. She looked like Samantha Carter, acted like Samantha Carter, and seemed very much like Samantha Carter."

"But she wasn't," Daniel finished.

Teal'c merely nodded.

"Look, I understand your concern, Teal'c. I see now why you and Jack were hesitant earlier."

At this, Teal'c frowned. "You are also concerned?"

"Yeah!" Daniel exclaimed. "Sam's great if she's on your team. But, if she's not, you're screwed. We've learned that the hard way over the past few years. And something about her just doesn't seem legitimate."

"This is true," Teal'c supposed. "However, I do not want past experiences to cloud my judgment in the matter of this version of Samantha Carter."

"Neither do I, Teal'c," Daniel said as they got off of the elevator at Level 28. "And I'm sure Jack doesn't want that either. And I know I was very adamant with you guys before, but I'm beginning to get a bad feeling about this."

"It is good to know I am not alone, Daniel Jackson."

* * *

"What do you want to do, sir?" Sam asked from the doorway of Landry's office. Jack looked up from his hands and sighed, not sure how to respond. There were many things he wanted to do at this point, with a total of 3 hours of sleep out of 72 under his belt – like throw himself off the top of the Mountain.

"I think… I want to call Landry."

"Well, sir," Sam began, "General Landry has less experience with this sort of… thing… than you."

"I know, but it kinda helps to gain perspective from another general," Jack said before he could stop himself. He immediately cursed himself for sticking his foot in it - yet again.

Sam tried her best not to look offended or even affected by the statement, but realized that he knew her too well.

"Not that you guys aren't great help," Jack added. "I just… ah, Hell… You know what I mean, Carter."

"Well… I know you're questioning yourself, which is… odd."

With a resigned sigh, Sam closed the door behind her and took a step closer to Jack's desk. "Out of the nine years that I've known you, I don't remember ever seeing you so insecure."

"Yeah, well…" Jack laughed, grasping for a witty reply, but sadly coming up with nothing. He sighed and placed his head on his folded hands, his eyes red and itchy, and his back aching from days of being up too long. He felt like crap.

"The thing is, sir, you're not new to this."

Jack looked up at Sam and frowned.

"You're not new to this whole, 'commanding respect and issuing orders' thing," Sam explained. "You've been doing it for nearly thirty years."

"Jeez, thanks for that, Carter," Jack muttered.

"Sir… Jack…"

That got his attention.

"What's wrong?" Sam asked, this time, her tone offering no room for elusion.

"I haven't been at this game in months, Sam," Jack said quietly. "I don't belong here anymore. The only reason why Landry let me do this was because he pitied me."

"He respects you, Jack," Sam responded. "General Landry knows that you've devoted too much of your life to this program, and that you deserve to see how things are running every once in a while. And I don't mean through the various weekly reports that land in your inbox in Washington every Monday."

Jack didn't respond.

"I don't know what kind of… funk… you're in right now, but you have to snap out of it, Jack. This is just like we said earlier: Old hat." Suddenly, a thought came to Sam's mind and she grinned. "Just, don't think too much; trust your instincts; follow your gut; and remember all that you've learned, and it'll all fall into place - "

" – or go to Hell in a hand basket," Jack finished with a smirk. "That sounds awfully familiar."

"And I never thought I'd be repeating it to you," Sam admitted.

"Hey, even the confident, well-tenured, general needs a pep talk every once in a while," Jack shot back with a rueful grin. "Thanks Carter."

"Anytime, sir." Sam took this as her opportunity to leave, but underestimated how quick Jack was. Before she even had her hand on the knob, his strong hand was on her arm, gently pulling her back to him.

"You still haven't gotten back to me about what we discussed the other night," he whispered into her ear.

Her breath caught in her throat, and she fought for control as she swallowed loudly.

"One hurdle at a time," she whispered back, her back still to him.

Jack let go of her arm, but not before squeezing it softly first and taking a step back.

Sam opened the door and took a step out of Jack's office. When she turned around, he was already behind his desk, a folder open before his eyes. He looked to be the perfect, controlled General – the self-assured officer she had always known.

What was wrong with him? What was going on?

Sam wasn't sure, but she promised herself that once this was over, finding out would be her first priority.

* * *

In the darkness of the shadows, she appeared. She found this planet's means of security to be incredibly inadequate. She couldn't imagine how they thought that she could be contained in such a facility. All she needed was the right… motivation.

There he was. He had fallen asleep at the desk, and he was completely oblivious to his surroundings. It wasn't unusual, she assumed, because he looked unreasonably comfortable. Still, she didn't think it was an adequate place to be sleeping. If only he had been in his bed.

Oh well. She'd have to make due with what she had, she supposed.

There was one light left on in the office, and it cast an eerily comforting glow about the room. This was the kind of lighting she was used to. The Replicators needed nothing else. They had worked all hours of the day, in all sorts of conditions. Invincible and uninhibited.

Empowered. She felt completely and utterly empowered. And she liked it.

As she gazed at his short gray tufts of hair, and listened to his heavy, calm, breathing, she felt the inner workings of a long-withheld desire run through her, and she shivered. Never had she felt such an emotion. Not even when she thought about him on the various planets she'd traveled, and certainly not with Fifth. It had been so long since she'd seen him, and she forgot how warm he was, how familiar he was. She couldn't understand how she could have possibly forgotten about the effect he had upon her.

No wonder Fifth had always been so possessive: He knew of her feelings towards this man. Fifth knew that she had a sort of power over this man as well. He had always felt threatened by a man whom he'd only met for a short while. He felt threatened by a man whom she had known for seven years.

She frowned without pity. Poor, poor Fifth.

Without hesitation, she ventured further into the room, wondering if his military training would spoil her plan and blow her cover. She could continue playing the wounded sparrow until the Second Coming, but she wasn't sure she could go very long without taking one, little peak inside his mind. It wouldn't be but an instant, but in that instant, she'd know so much more about who he was. It'd been so long. She had to at least see how he'd changed, why he wasn't working at the SGC anymore, how he'd gotten rid of Anubis. Curiosity got the better of her.

And then, as she extended her hand to his head and prepared to see all that she wanted to see, she snapped. She no longer wanted to see what he saw. She wanted to create what he saw.

It took her but a second to decide just what she wanted to do to him.

Another second to completely take control of him.

* * *

"Has anyone seen my blue crayon?"

_What?_

Jack was sure he was going crazy, because, if he didn't know any better, he'd have to say he just heard a little voice say –

"Has anyone seen my blue crayon?"

There it was again!

"Here it is."

Oh man.

He knew his eyes were closed, that was for sure. And the sun was shining down upon his lids lightly, comfortably, almost asking him to keep them closed. The lounge chair he could only assume he was sitting in was cozy enough, beckoning him to snuggle even further into the cushions. He couldn't remember ever feeling this calm. He definitely couldn't remember feeling this comfortable. Boy, was he in need of a vacation.

"What's he doing?"

That was a third voice, not much older than the second, and definitely male.

Where the heck was he? Cassie's old elementary school?

"He's sleeping, Jacob."

Jacob…

"He looks… like he's having a nightmare."

"Jacob," the second voice whispered, "if he was having a nightmare, we'd know."

"Yeah. I guess you're right."

"Where are you going?" The young girl sounded indignant and almost demanding.

"I'm gonna see if I can wake him up."

"You can't just wake him up, Jake."

"Watch me."

"Jake!"

"Grace… Stop being such a chicken. He won't get mad. He never gets mad."

Even as they argued, he could hear three pairs of shoes trampling through the fallen leaves around his chair. They were coming close, and it was time for him to decide whether or not he was gonna keep playing possum.

Then, a thought came to his mind: He didn't know who these kids were, but he could definitely have some fun messing with their heads.

Slowly, he took a deep breath, and idly scratched his chest. Immediately, the footsteps stopped.

"What are you gonna do, Jake?" the first kid – a boy – asked.

"I don't know yet. I'll think of something when I get there."

Jack had to fight a chuckle.

The footsteps stopped about a foot away from his head, and he could feel their eyes on his every feature. It took all of his 20-plus years of training to get his face to remain neutral. He could only imagine the intense gazes they'd be laying into him right now, if he was assuming correctly. This had to be perfect.

A shadow came in front of his eyes, momentarily blocking the sun. He knew it was most likely a hand, but he also knew he had to act quickly. When the shadow came over his eyes again, that was all he needed. In one fell swoop, he had a small arm in his hand and the owner screaming for dear life.

In fact, all three of them were screaming.

When it was over, his eyes were open and he was finally able to place a voice with a face.

The youngest of the group – the one in desperate need of a blue crayon – couldn't have been a day over five. His brown hair just reached his ears, and for a moment, Jack was struck with a painful memory. However, there was something different about this boy. There was something that definitely made him look different from Charlie. Upon closer scrutiny, Jack realized, it was the eyes. They were blue. A familiar shade of blue.

The dirty-blonde to the boy's left was giggling, with her hand covering her mouth, and her brown eyes shining. She looked somewhere within the eight-to-ten range, and he couldn't place her looks with anyone else, but she definitely looked wise beyond her years. Her free hand held a thick, red book with numbers lining each page, and his mind instantly went to Carter. Yeah, she and this kid could definitely get along.

And then there was Jake. Jake's arm was still firmly within Jack's grasp, and he looked anything but amused. Jack wasn't about to let go of his arm that easily. There were still some things that he needed to make clear. The boy's dark hair and eyes covered his features with a young handsome quality, and Jack had to grin at his antics. The kid was trying to pretend to be mad – and failing.

OK, Jack thought, now who are these kids?

"That was not funny," Jake muttered as he lamely yanked on his arm. Jack didn't let go, but he certainly sent the kid a raised eyebrow.

"I thought you were sleeping," the young boy cried.

"Yeah, good one, Dad. You definitely had us fooled," the girl agreed.

Jack's face fell. All sense of reality failed him. He was so shocked that he dropped the kid's arm and sat back in the chair in a slump.

Grace (he remembered her name _now_) looked horrified to see him fall back like that, and sprang to action. "Dad? Dad, are you OK? Dad?"

Oh God, he thought, please make her stop!

"What's wrong, Dad?" The little boy followed her lead and approached his father with concern in his eyes. "Are you sick?"

"Uh…" Jack swallowed slowly, and fought the urge to demand questions at a rapid speed. He knew it would be pointless anyway. This kinda stuff happened all the time, right? This should be like old hat to him, just like Sam had said. "I'm good." He sat up and cleared his throat, determined to get answers without freaking out.

When he was sitting up straight, he was able to see that all three of the kids looked terrified. Did this kinda stuff happen often? Gently, he turned to the young boy and smiled lightly. "What's your name?"

"Dad," the boy began softly. "You know my name. I'm Andrew!"

At the corner of his eye, he saw Grace and Jake exchange worried glances.

Now what the heck did THAT mean?

"How's it going Andrew?" Jack continued.

"I'm fine, Dad. You wanna see the picture I drew?"

Without waiting for his response, Andrew turned around to retrieve his picture from across the yard, giving Jack a chance to get some control. He took this time to ascertain his surroundings. It was definitely a Colorado fall. The leaves had completely fallen, and the backyard – at least he thought it was a backyard – was huge. A tire swing hung from branches on one side of the yard, with a new swing set accompanying it nearby. Three bikes were lined up next to a wooden shed, and a rake was haphazardly left lying against the fence. It was beautiful – all of it.

When his eyes fell back upon the kids, he found that both Grace and Jake were staring at him like he was gonna explode. Great.

Where am I?

"Look, Dad!" Andrew shoved the picture in Jack's face and grinned happily. "I've got EVERYONE in our family, Dad! See?"

"Yeah," Jack answered absently as he stared at the picture.

"That's me," Andrew told him, pointing to a figure on the far left, who was playing with a dog. Jack grinned. A dog.

"It's great, Andrew. Good job."

"Thanks!"

With that, Andrew turned around and headed back to the picnic table, assumedly to prepare

another masterpiece. All of this, however, was beyond Jack. He was at a loss for words. How did this happen? Where was he? Why was he here?

He stared at the picture, hoping to garner some sort of info from that. He was completely oblivious to the death glares the two kids continued to shoot his way.

He immediately recognized the Crayola version of Grace and Jake: They were the ones fighting on the opposite side of the page. He grinned. Next to them were two others. One had long, orange-red hair, and a coat on. He could tell that it was a woman by the high heels.

OK, Jack thought, I guess I've found "Mom" – whoever that is.

The woman was standing next to a taller, brown-haired guy, whose arm was around her shoulder. He immediately assumed it was him, until he realized that there was an even taller, gray-haired guy standing next to him. Right… He had unwillingly ditched the brown a LONG time ago.

So there was another member of this family. Who could he be? Daniel? No, that couldn't be right. Where would Teal'c be?

"Dad?" Jacob asked slowly, shooting his sister another look. "What's going on?"

"I'm just admiring Andrew's handiwork," Jack answered coyly. "Why? Something wrong?"

"Uh, yeah!" Grace answered indignantly. "You look like you've never seen us before!"

Jack frowned lightly as he stared down at the picture once more.

"What would make you think that?" he asked absently.

"Well, you looked like you were having a heart attack earlier, for one thing," Jake replied.

"No, no," Jack insisted as Andrew came back over to the group. "I was just… a bit confused. You know how it is when you just wake up."

Grace and Jake looked anything but convinced.

"You really like it, Dad?" Andrew asked. Jack couldn't help but nod vigorously.

"Absolutely." Grinning – ever the actor playing his part – he pointed to the orange-haired woman. "Who's that, Andrew?"

"Oh, that's Mom," Andrew answered, before leaning in conspiratorially. "I ran out of yellow."

By the time that information _should_ have registered in Jack's mind, the back door to the house behind him was opening and shutting. Still, he couldn't help but stare at the picture.

He knew he was here for a reason. He just didn't know what reason. And who were these kids? An alternate reality, maybe? How would he have gotten here? He only remembered falling asleep in his – no, _Landry's_ - office, and he knew for a fact that the quantum mirror on Earth had been destroyed. The Jumper's time travel capabilities had been deactivated immediately after they had found the camcorder in Egypt – he remembered because Carter couldn't sleep for days until the order was officially given from the President. So… What was going on here?

"Mom!" the kids cried in unison. He knew that he should be turning around as well, finding the identity of "Mom," and putting all of his questions to rest once and for all. Still, he couldn't help but stare at the paper. He simply felt compelled to figure out who this sixth family member was.

"Hey guys!"

Jack froze.

He knew that voice more intimately than he cared to admit, and there she was, standing not twenty feet away from him, just as jovial and cognizant as the kids. For a moment, he allowed himself to believe that she was following along with the façade until the two of them could get some time alone to discuss the situation. Then he realized that that made no sense. Right?

"Where's Thor?" Andrew cried.

"Yeah, is he OK?" Jake added.

"Thor is gonna be fine," Sam was saying as Jack turned around in his chair. As he made eye contact with her, Sam simply smiled and nodded, before stepping back inside the house. When she came out, she had a golden retriever in tow. "Dr. Lyle said that he just needed some vitamins. You know, he is getting old, guys."

Golden retriever?

"Thor!" The kids looked ecstatic as they each got a chance to greet him. Jack shared another grin with Sam – albeit wan at best – before turning back to the drawing. He couldn't imagine her being in the same state as he was and carrying along so naturally. He had gotten a good look at her, and she definitely wasn't the Sam he knew. There was just something about her, something more peaceful and at ease about her demeanor. She seemed calm and even… free. Her shoulder-length hair was also a giveaway to her symbolic lack of regulations, whatever they were. If this WAS an alternate reality, all of this would make perfect sense. The only problem was, he didn't know how he got here or how to get back.

He wasn't quite sure he wanted to get back, if he was perfectly honest with himself.

"You guys are gonna spoil that dog rotten," another voice called from behind him. Jack frowned to himself as he eyed the guy in the picture – the guy who happened to be, he now realized, pretty close to Sam.

"Charlie!" Grace cried. "You're here."

It took every fiber within Jack's being to keep him from instinctively turning around like a madman.

"Hey, Charlie," Jake began. "When did you get in?"

"Charlie!" Andrew exclaimed.

He had to swallow several times before he could work up the courage to turn around casually. When he did, he realized his suspicions were true.

The tall, young adult was holding Andrew in the air, while he hugged Grace, and engaged Jake in conversation. Though he had to be 17 or 18, he looked every bit like he had as a kid. It was all a dream, Jack decided. All of it. How could this be real? How could Charlie be alive? How?

Tears, unannounced, welled up in Jack's eyes, and he had to blink them away to keep them from falling. Why? Why was this happening?

"Dad?" The adult version of Charlie was addressing Jack, and he couldn't think of how to respond. He had gone over a hundred hypothetical conversations he could have with Charlie, if given a second chance, and yet he couldn't imagine how he could get through a real conversation with the kid now. Not now. "Dad? You OK?"

"Yeah," Jack squeaked as he hoisted himself out of the chair. "Just thinking." Grace and Jake shot Charlie a look, before turning back to see him. The very look gave him reason to believe that the kids didn't trust him. He didn't know why. It wasn't like he ASKED to be placed in this position. They rarely ever did.

Sam was gone, and it was just the kids and Charlie now. Andrew was still in his arms, and Grace was still two inches away from him. Jake was still trying to reach his shoulders in height. It was picturesque, yet scary. He needed her there to explain what was happening, but he had no idea how to ask.

"So, Charlie," Jack began softly. "How's it going?"

"Good. Practice was great, I got a date to homecoming. It was a good day."

"Ooh," Grace began, "a date? Really?"

"Really." Charlie grinned. "And she's a great person. We'll have fun."

"Cool," Jake appraised. "That was fast."

"Congratulations… son," Jack faltered at the title. He'd never thought he'd get the chance to use that name again, let alone with his firstborn.

"Thanks, Dad." Charlie smiled that enigmatic smile of his, before hoisting Andrew further on his hips.

"Hey, guys?" Jack began. "Where'd your mother go?"

"Back inside," Grace answered flatly.

"OK. Thanks." As he passed the kids, on a whim, he placed a hand on Charlie's shoulder and smiled. "How's school treating ya, Charlie?"

"Dad, it's high school," he reminded him. "It's torture with only a LITTLE bit of fun. I'm bound to find something to complain about."

"Good point," Jack conceded. "Well, you'd know better than I. I have faith in you. Listen, we'll chat later, OK?"

"OK, Dad," Jake answered, sounding and looking confused. "We'll be out here."

"Great." Jack nodded and smiled brightly, before heading into the mystery house.

"I was wondering when you were going to say, 'Hi,'" Sam joked from the fridge, as she began to take food out for dinner. "I haven't seen you all day, you know."

"Carter?" Jack asked slowly, praying that she'd tell him if she was in the same boat as he was.

"Yes, sir?" Sam responded with a mocking tone, before pausing as her grin fell. "What's wrong, Jack?"

"I'm really… confused."

"How so?" Sam pressed.

"I woke up… from a nap… out there, and I gotta tell ya, I didn't recognize any of those kids… except for Charlie. And even then…"

Sam's smile faltered just enough for her eyes to grow concerned.

"Honey… That's OK. You remember them now, right?"

"No," Jack answered flatly. "They're cute kids, great kids, smart kids… But they're not mine. You know I only had one son, Carter, and he was NOT a teenager the last time I saw him. What's going on here?"

Minutely, he saw Sam frown to himself, but not in the way that she did when she was thinking – more in the way she did when she felt guilty.

"Jack, honey… This isn't new. You've always had this problem." She sighed before focusing her attention back on the food on the counter. "And, every time, it's the same."

Jack frowned and looked Carter right in the eye, searching her face for fear or lies.

He found none.

"What do you mean?" he asked finally.

"Jack… You endured severe head trauma off-world five years ago on P8V-7829. You've been… Well, you've been a 'stay-at-home dad' since then."

Jack didn't respond at first. He felt dizzy, a little like he was buzzed, but somehow he knew that he hadn't had a beer in days.

"Jack," Sam continued, "the problem is, you have had an acute form of PTSD for several years now because of the accident. Sometimes you need a - a – a refresher for your mind, because you forget things. Like now. Do you know the names of the kids?"

"Charlie…"

"Yes." She looked pleased. "And?"

"Jake… after your dad, I'm assuming." He rubbed his skull, not happy with the info she was giving him and not fully confident that he was buying all of it.

"And Grace and Andrew," Sam finished with a grin. "Charlie, Jake, Grace, and Andrew, 17, 11, 9, and 5 years old, respectively. … They're the children out in the backyard Jack, our children."

Finally, he decided that he couldn't take anymore of this. Something had to give. It was almost like she was trying to convince him more than remind him, and it was giving him a headache.

"Yeah, I got that!" Jack snapped, causing her to jump. "I got it!"

Sam blinked once, almost infinitesimally, before slowly walking over to where Jack was sitting at the counter. Her voice was like silk, and it was a part of Sam he'd never seen before. "I'm sorry, Jack. I just… it scares me sometimes. And the kids. They know you have nightmares, Jack. They know you sometimes forget, but they're so good about it. They don't ask you too many questions, and they love you so much." Bending down to his lowered height, she gave him a kiss on the cheek, lingering slightly to get his attention. "And I love you, too. I hate to see you like this."

* * *

In the quiet, dark of the office, she could see that they were engulfed in a bluish-green bubble of energy, something she had neither seen before nor anticipated. Whatever it was, it was calming, soothing, and it strengthened her power over him.

She could hear them coming, but she didn't have time to safely and slowly ease out of this position. Briefly, she wondered if it would kill him. She had never been this in control before! It was invigorating! If it didn't kill him, her hasty exit from his mind would do severe damage… possibly permanent.

Still, she knew she had made a horrible mistake. She should never have come here. But it was too late.

She could not get caught.

She could not get caught! How could she have been so stupid! She had underestimated these people, had become arrogant, and therefore was no better than Anubis.

She had to leave. They were coming. Her original was so close, she could hear her heart beat deafeningly in tune with her own.

They were coming.

She had to leave.

But not before making her last, indelible mark on his mind…

* * *

Jack inwardly frowned at the feelings her presence was evoking in him. He thought he had control when they were just shoulder-to-shoulder in the briefing room, or gun-to-gun in combat, but it surprised him to know that this was comfortable. This felt… great.

"I hate being like this," he found himself saying. "To be honest."

Wait… what?

"I know you do," Sam whispered in his ear. "But you're OK now. And you always will be. We believe in you, and we know you'll be OK."

Suddenly, he felt the world tilt, and everything was engulfed in an oddly familiar shade of blue and silver. He felt himself falling, but he knew that Sam wouldn't be able to catch him before he hit the floor.

The sounds from outside were distant yet clear. Everything was echoing in his left ear, and for a short time, Jack had double vision.

The Sam on the left was the one from this… fantasy. She was worried, whispering to him that everything was going to be OK. She held the promise of a life he had only dreamed of one day regaining.

The Sam on the right was the one from reality, the one he'd always known. The one that really mattered, because she was a constant. She was also worried, also whispered to him that he was going to be alright. She was an example of the life he had been dealt.

Both were shouting his name.

"Jack!"

"Sir!"

He knew he would always choose his Sam, but this other Sam was quite tempting. Could they be one in the same?

Jack wasn't given a chance to decide, because as soon as each Sam reached to touch his face on both cheeks, oblivion found him.


	5. Distrust

Sam stood at the back of the room, nervous and antsy. The doctors had told her, Teal'c and Daniel that Jack was in a coma – a deep coma that he apparently had no intentions of coming out of anytime soon.

General Landry was 30 minutes away from the Mountain, and apparently was… less than pleased. The doctors had determined that Jack had had a stroke, a concept which had been completely foreign to them all until now.

Never before would she have thought that Jack was susceptible, but Dr. Lam and Dr. Blane chocked it up to severe stress and poor sleeping and eating habits. Apparently his blood pressure was constantly through the roof.

Sam was skeptical. Sure, Jack didn't sleep well, but neither did Hammond and certainly Landry didn't nowadays. And Jack had always been stressed out. Who wouldn't be, considering where they worked?

Dr. Lam had reminded Sam of Jack's age, and she had winced self-consciously. No, Jack was not exactly in his prime anymore. None of them were.

At any rate, the doctors believed that the stroke had affected the parts of Jack's brain that controlled motor functions. The effects were similar to what had happened to her five years prior during her encounter with the alien entity hell-bent on revenge. Still, something didn't seem to add up. The Alternate Carter's presence was random as was Jack's sudden episode. The two didn't seem connected on the surface, but no one would have been surprised if they were somehow related. When her room had been checked, she'd been found to be sleeping in her bed, sound asleep. Almost too soundly…

General Landry had demanded that no one come in contact with her counterpart until his arrival, which meant that she would have no opportunity to manhandle or interrogate the woman herself.

Teal'c stood not five feet away from Sam, and watched as the cogs in her mind continued to churn. He knew that her thoughts were traveling along the same path as his, and that she too suspected Other Carter.

Teal'c knew that Sam would stop at nothing to figure out the cause of this. He also knew that, if she were to find out that the doctors' diagnosis was accurate, she would no longer pursue her charge against the other woman. And he felt the same.

He turned to Daniel then, observing the linguist's own pained features. Daniel had been silent the whole time, also affected by Jack's illness. It had, indeed, been sudden, and quite devastating in its effects. Daniel had wanted to believe that Jack would pull out of it, as they always had, however it'd been several hours, and his condition had not improved.

As it was, this other version of Samantha Carter was not trusted, nor was she cleared from any present or future accusations. Though Teal'c wanted to believe that this was a coincidence and that Jack had a chance of surviving, the doctors did not believe that Jack would ever regain proper use of his motor skills again.

He could see in the set of Sam's jaw that she didn't want to believe it, could see in Daniel's posture that he knew it was possible. Teal'c remembered when Samantha Carter and Daniel Jackson had once been the team's optimists, always looking for the best in any person and any given situation. Mostly, it had been Daniel who had been patient. Even Sam had had limits and boundaries set within military and scientific principles. Still, out of the three of them, she could almost always be trusted to side with Daniel on certain issues, even if she agreed with Jack's decisions as well. She had been an officer of the military and an ally of science and the greater good, and he had always respected her for her ease in mixing the two. Now, he watched as the woman and friend warred with the seasoned officer for control.

Daniel knew that she wanted to scream. Her posture was ramrod straight, and she had grown very still.

Samantha Carter wanted to take a step closer to Jack, wanted to hold his hand to make sure that he was alive.

Colonel Sam Carter wanted to demand more answers from the medical staff, wanted to interrogate the crap out of this other woman whom she distrusted.

Daniel had never known the frustration of having dual personalities, besides the many moments in SG-1's history where an alien had been involved. He always knew that Jack O'Neill was marginally different from Colonel/General Jack O'Neill. He always knew that Samantha Carter was different from Captain/Major/Colonel Carter, and that "Carter" was even more different from Dr. Carter, Astrophysicist.

That had never been a question in his mind, but as he watched Sam watch Jack, and watched Teal'c watch Sam, he knew that something would have to give soon. This Other Carter was either an innocent or extremely dangerous.

She was in guarded quarters, but perhaps they had underestimated her abilities. They always did. They trusted Sam when it counted, but they tended to forget to FEAR Sam when that counted just as much.

Daniel wanted to believe with all of his heart that Jack would pull through. He had never seen him in such a state before – especially something as terrestrial as a stroke. Within the first few hours of his stay in the infirmary, Jack's condition had declined. Yes, Daniel knew that Jack was under a lot of stress, but he never thought that it would get to him in such a powerful way.

If this Alternate Sam was not responsible for Jack's sudden stroke, then that was one less obstacle to worry about, yes. But what about Jack? What about his life? Would he survive? Would he pull through?

Daniel began to doubt.

He hated doubting.

* * *

Light.

Dark.

Hot.

Cold.

Soft.

Kisses…

Images of times Jack couldn't pinpoint were being thrown at him at lightning speed. He couldn't hope to catch up, but somehow each memory brought him closer to where he needed to be. He began to welcome the images, the memories, the intense feelings that came with each passing moment. Was he dreaming, imagining the times that had been described to him? Or was he remembering the things that he had really always known?

His wedding to Carter – Sam… Joy, happiness, peace…

Finding Charlie on PZY-6203, sad and sick and alone… Bringing him home to Sam…

Jacob being born soon after Sam's dad died of cancer… Holding Sam as she grieved…

Goa'uld… Pain… Death… Torture… Loss…

Gracie being born… Sam almost dying… Fear…

Teal'c and Daniel playing poker with crazy hats on… Absurdity…

Andrew being born… Sam fighting with a Tok'ra inside… Anger…

His own head imploding… Heart stopping… Starting… Stopping… Intense pain…

Everything… Backwards… Out of place… Out of order… Out of sync… Wrong…

Not understanding why.

Jack woke up with a start, his heart pounding, his head throbbing, and his skin sweaty. He felt Sam at his side, and knew that she was concerned without even looking at her.

"You OK?" Sam asked groggily.

Jack only nodded.

"Was it a nightmare?"

He was confused.

"No."

Jack was scared.

"You sure?"

It didn't make sense.

"Yeah."

Sam was safe.

"Are you sure you're OK?"

Sam was home.

"I will be…"

This was right.

* * *

The next morning at the kitchen table, Jack saw a unique form of domestic chaos. He had truly underestimated the power of four kids and a dog. He had slept in this morning, something not out of the ordinary.

As he stood in the doorway of the kitchen, Jack felt his heart swell with something akin to bliss. He had felt something like that before. When Daniel, Teal'c, and Sam had all finally come up to the cabin with him two weeks after Jacob had died.

Wait…

That wasn't right. Where did that come from?

Sure, Daniel, Teal'c, and Sam had come to the cabin with him, but it had been long before Jacob had died of cancer.

Weird.

Jack looked up from his query and again felt his stomach flutter. Sam was on one side of the sink, packing lunches for Jake, Grace and Andrew. Charlie was on the other side, making breakfast at the stove. Every once in a while, he would say something and she would either laugh or slap him on the arm playfully.

Behind them, Grace was reading a book, Jake was playing with some video game, and Andrew was playing with the dog.

The whole scene screamed of "Kodak moment," but Jack didn't remember ever being a mushy person who was full of hugs, kisses, and a naïve view of the world.

Still, watching everyone go about their daily routine put some things in perspective for him.

He had a great family, and he was going to do whatever he could to protect it. No matter how much medication Doc gave him; no matter how many "exercises" Sam and Daniel forced upon him; no matter how many times Teal'c gave him that subtle, non-threatening, but rather forceful look, he would do what he needed to do to make his family work again. To make it the way it was supposed to be. He owed them that much.

"Honey, don't forget that Daniel, Sarah, Teal'c, Ishta and the kids are coming over tonight," Sam called without turning around.

How did she do that?

"Huh?" Jack frowned. "What?"

"Barbecue?" Sam stated as she shot him an incredulous look, as if that explained everything. "The one you've been bellowing about for two weeks?"

"Oh? Oh… Right. That's tonight?"

Jack was nothing, if not smooth.

"Yeah, Dad," Charlie said with a snort. His voice and presence ran chills down Jack's spine, and he didn't know why.

"Dad?" Jake called, his eyes wide. "Hello?"

"What's up, kid?" Jack asked as he leaned against the counter and crossed his arms.

"Didn't you hear? When Charlie said he had a date to Homecoming, he didn't say he was going with Addison!"

"Addison?" For a brief moment, Jack drew a blank, and then, almost immediately his mind was filled with the necessary information.

Daniel and Sarah had three kids: Twins, Addison and Matthew, who were both 17-year-old seniors, and Gregory, who was 10.

Hmmm… Cozy.

"Well, that's nice, Charlie," Jack finally said. "You guys get on well enough. I mean you've known each other for years!"

Charlie simply rolled his eyes.

"The funny thing," Grace began behind her book, "is that Uncle Daniel doesn't know yet."

"Well, I'm sure he'll get over it," Sam said as she placed a plate of food in front of Andrew.

"Yeah!" Charlie said, suddenly and emphatically annoyed. "Matt and Layna have been going out since the fifth grade!"

Huh? Jack frowned.

Layna… Layna…

Layna, 17, Fiona, 12, and Gia, 10…

And Ry'ac.

Teal'c lived in a house full of women, unless Ry'ac visited – and even then he brought his wife.

Teal'c lived near the base. Not on the base.

Somehow, Jack found that odd…

"Layna and Matt are different from you and Addy," Grace continued.

"And how so?" Charlie demanded, his brown eye shining.

"You guys are more like Mom and Dad," Grace said innocently. "Whereas Layna and Matt are more like Uncle Daniel and Aunt Sarah… Considering you're the one like Dad, Uncle Daniel probably has good cause to worry."

"She's got you there," Jake pointed out as he took a bite of eggs.

Sam attempted to suppress a smirk. And failed.

"Hey!" Jack cried once he finally got the comment. "I resent that!"

"Yeah!" Charlie cried. "Me, too!"

"Sam," Jack found himself nearly whining.

"Mom," Charlie said at the same time.

"Don't involve me in this… little tiff," Sam warned as she backed away.

"What do you think, Mom?" Jake asked, ignoring her statement.

"Yeah, what DO you think?" Charlie challenged.

"Well…" She surreptitiously shot Jack a glance, before looking back down at the counter. "I'd have to say that you're both pretty… deviant."

"What?" Charlie demanded. "Come on!

"Hey!" Jack cried. "Deviant's a bit strong, don't you think?"

"Well, the first word that came to mind was much worse," Sam qualified with a wince.

Grace giggled at that.

"What were you REALLY gonna say?" Jake inquired.

"Wild or extreme, right Mom?" Grace filled in with a grin.

Sam didn't respond, but she was looking worriedly between an agape Charlie and grinning Jack. He couldn't help it. He was grinning. Sam was totally ranking him, but he couldn't help but grin like a madman.

Oddly, it felt like he hadn't smiled this way in a long time.

* * *

After General Landry made it back to the base to assess the current problems at hand, Sam reluctantly agreed to retire to her assigned quarters until further notice. Daniel and Teal'c had been just as reluctant. Nevertheless, it had taken Sam a good hour before she was lost in a restless sleep.

* * *

Once again, the security had failed this pitiful base, and she had been able to elude capture. Her abilities, even in human form, had proven to be both unanticipated and practical. She didn't know how much time she had before Oma made her move, but she was almost positive that Oma would not take the subtle route this time around. That left her with little time to finish her plan.

First, to destroy her original.

Slowly she advanced on the one person who had angered her most, more than Daniel Jackson, more than Oma Desala, and more than Fifth. Her original, the bane of her existence, yet the very reason for it, had caused her more trouble than she deserved. It was because of her original that she was the way she was, proving her original's true underlying power. Her original would be a threat, a hindrance, and an annoying reminder of the abomination she had been made to be. Time was of the essence. She had to be eliminated.

Though Sam was exhausted, she was still full of energy. Like a wire about to snap, her nerves were overwrought with tension. As it was, though she was sleeping, Sam sensed her counterpart before she fully grasped that she was in danger. It didn't matter anyway. Sam was overtaken by the time she opened her eyes. She didn't stand a chance.

* * *

In the quiet of his quarters, Teal'c felt a disturbance in the air, as if someone were with him, sitting right at his side. He was not asleep, nor was he meditating. Quickly, Teal'c opened his eyes. Looking around the room, he realized that it had just been the wind. He was alone.

Still, he could not shake the feeling that something was amiss. Something was not right. His instincts had rarely failed him in the past, and his friends – his family – had learned to trust their lives with them. Through his training as a Jaffa and his experience on Earth, Teal'c knew that trusting one's instincts was imperative to one's survival.

Slowly, he stood up, unsure of his footing for a moment, and chilled with the cold of dread.

He had to find Daniel Jackson. Teal'c didn't know why, but he had to find Daniel.

With more force than necessary, Teal'c crossed the small distance between his bed and the door and opened it – only to find Daniel in front of it, ready to knock.

"Teal'c," Daniel said, his breath heavy, his eyes wide. "Something's wrong."

* * *

"Dad, do you think you can cook anything besides 'really, really well-done?'" Jake quipped as he plopped a blackened steak on his own plate.

"Yeah. Charred is more like it," Charlie muttered as he took one for himself.

Jack shot his sons dirty looks. "You have two hands, Charlie. If you want a Salmonella-filled, rare steak, be my guest."

"Dad," Grace whined from behind Charlie, her face scrunched up in disgust.

"What?" Jack demanded, his eyes wide. "I'm just saying…"

"I totally understand where they're coming from," Daniel stated as he came up to the grill. "Oddly enough, we all want to be able to TASTE the meat."

"Listen, Daniel," Jack began, "I NEVER see you with anything but a fork and knife in your hands when we get together like this. So, unless you're willing to wield a spatula, you can just cram it and grab your seconds like everybody else."

For the first time in Jack's life, he realized, he had rendered Daniel speechless.

"Wow, Jack," Daniel deadpanned. "I'm hurt."

"And I'm hungry!" Andrew cried. "I don't care if the steak is BLUE!"

"You should, darling," Sarah said from Daniel's side. "Though that really IS only a problem if Daniel is cooking."

"Hey!" Daniel cried. "That is so not true!"

"Daniel, your specialty is coffee," Jack said, sending a knowing grin to Sarah. "Now, if only you had thought of banking on that before Starbuck's had…"

"Who says I didn't?" Daniel grumbled as he walked away, two steaks in hand.

"I think you're a great chef, Uncle Jack," Greg said as he walked away.

"I would not eat a steak any other way," Teal'c agreed as he, Ishta, and Sam approached the grill with Fiona and Gia in tow.

Jack grinned. "Thanks, T. That means a lot coming from you!"

"Is that because Teal'c is such a picky eater?" Ishta retorted with a chuckle of her own.

Jack shrugged lightly, still grinning, and turned to Sam.

She was looking around as if she didn't know where she was.

Odd.

"Hey, Sam!" Jack called to get her attention. "What'll it be? Hotdogs or world-famous steaks?"

Slowly, she looked up from her reverie, her eyes full of confusion and concern.

"Jack? What's going on?"


	6. Discourse

"Carter?" Mitchell whispered into his colleague's quarters, his hand on the doorframe. "Carter? Sam?" He didn't know where the heck she was now, but Siler AND Walter had said that she'd be here. "Sam?"

"Cameron?" Sam asked from behind Mitchell, causing him to jump. "What are you doing out of the infirmary?"

"Uh…" Cameron looked sheepish. "Sorry, I was just worried. I heard about General O'Neill. And I wanted to get all of the info from you guys. I can't find Daniel or Teal'c, and Walter said that an 'alternate version' of you is on the base, saying she's come through a quantum mirror, but I don't know how that could be. I also wanted - "

"Cameron," Sam interrupted, one hand in the air, the other to her head. "Let me fill you in, and we can go from there."

"You OK?" Cameron asked. "You don't look so good."

"It's been a long day, Mitchell," she responded airily, her tone brooking no argument as she walked around Mitchell and towards her bed. "You wouldn't look much better, I assure you."

Before he could respond however, Teal'c and Daniel came charging into Sam's quarters unannounced. Cameron swerved on a dime at the intrusion. They didn't even knock, rushing in there like bats outta Hell. Cameron frowned at the looks in their eyes. OK, he thought, so something is obviously wrong here.

"Colonel Mitchell," Teal'c intoned.

"Cameron," Daniel said simultaneously. "What are you doing here?"

"Uh, what's up guys?" Cameron asked, his eyebrow raised. What was going on with everyone?

"Where is Colonel Carter?" Teal'c demanded, his tone urgent.

"Where is Colonel Carter?" Cameron asked incredulously. "She's right he- "

Wait…

Cameron did a double-take, not believing his eyes.

Sam was nowhere to be found.

And she definitely wasn't in the room with them.

He turned back to his teammates in shock.

"She was right… here…"

* * *

Stupid, meddling man!

Who in this galaxy was he? Why was he here? Colonel Cameron Mitchell…

Either way, if he had been but a few moments earlier, he would have, without a doubt, caught her…

Cameron Mitchell…

She felt like she should recognize the name, but nothing seemed to click. She didn't have time to think, no time to do anything but to get back to her original's lab.

Her original was unconscious, possibly permanently.

It had taken her a few moments to regain control over Jack's mind, but once she had, it had been simple. Her original had been pliable, much more flexible and willing to conform than she had been several hours prior.

He would never wake.

She would never wake.

The SGC would hold on to hope that they would come back.

Daniel and Teal'c would deny, despair, and grieve appropriately, but they would never let go.

But these two would both be happy in this sugar-coated fantasy of what could have been…

She stopped in her tracks, feeling suddenly sick.

That hadn't been the plan. Why had she spared her life? Why hadn't she destroyed her? With one flick of her wrist, her original could have been nothing more than crushed bones. Why had she stopped herself?

Surely she wasn't second-guessing herself…

Not so.

She had just decided to be more creative with her torture, that's all.

Nothing more.

Eventually they would both realize they were living a lie, and would be powerless to end it. It'd be the dream that never ended, one they'd never escape. And in the back of their minds, they'd always know that it wasn't real. That it wasn't true. That they could never be happy like that in reality.

And they, too, would hold onto the hope of surviving, of coming back to reality, of seeing the real Daniel and Teal'c again. Until they finally withered away in both body and spirit. Until there was nothing left for them to fight.

After all, she thought, why destroy an individual physically, when you can destroy their soul?

Somehow the excuse did not ring true.

* * *

Jack stared at Sam from across the bonfire in the backyard and frowned. She was still as beautiful as the day they'd met. She had been edgy then, a little combative, but not without good reason. He and Kawalsky had given her a hard time, after all.

Wait…

No… In the beginning, she had been quiet, reserved, ready to follow orders, but willing to stand up for what was right. Kawalsky had been smitten immediately, but that was before Jack realized that he, himself, was beyond smitten.

He had never known a better second in command than Carter…

No.

Kawalsky had always been his second, until two years after he and Sam had gotten married. Kawalsky had died soon after they brought Charlie home. It had been his last mission.

But something was wrong with that equation as well.

Jack looked up to glance at Sam again, but found that she was no longer a part of the circle. Daniel, Sarah, Ishta, and Teal'c were still talking animatedly about the current presidential administration.

Inside, the kids were watching a movie. Sam was gone.

He decided then to follow her, to see what had happened, what was wrong. Had he said something stupid? He couldn't think of anything, but that was never a good sign or anything anyway.

He checked the whole house, but came up empty. She was good.

By the time Jack reached the kitchen, he was ready to give up, when he suddenly felt two hands snake around his middle and up his chest. He jumped away, but not fast enough.

As he turned around, Jack was both disturbed and confused to find that the two hands didn't belong to Sam.

"Ishta?"

"Yes, Jack?"

Wow… she had definitely been packing the Buds this evening.

Jack blinked twice before he pried her arms off of his torso and stepped away.

"What are you doing?"

Ishta leered in a way that had never been directed at Jack before, and he gulped in fear. "I apologize… Is this too open for you?"

"What are you talking about?" Jack nearly bellowed before he remembered that the kids were in the other room.

"I'm sorry… Sometimes I forget that you like to feign ignorance…"

"What?"

"Jack?"

"What?"

"Don't you want me, Jack?"

She was pouting, only Jack didn't find it amusing at all. In fact, he was quite pissed on behalf of one of his best friends.

"No, Ishta. No. I know you're… wasted… but you know that you only 'want' Teal'c, just like I only want Sam…"

"But does Teal'c want me?" Ishta hissed angrily. "Does he want me?"

"What? I don't know, Ishta. That's something that you're gonna have to talk to Teal'c about. Look, I'm sure he does…"

"You don't know," Ishta chided harshly, as she took a step away from him. "You don't see what I see… The looks, the touches…"

"The what?"

"Teal'c is in love with Samantha," Ishta explained, her eyes suddenly quite sober. "Yes, your wife. He has been for a long time. However, his sense of honor has kept him from acting upon his feelings."

"Uh, Ishta," Jack began, "I don't know what you're talking about. Teal'c loves you."

"Only because he must!"

"You've been together for nearly 20 years!"

"The very fact that burdens him everyday!" Ishta whispered heatedly.

"You can't possibly think that - "

"Oh, I do," Ishta assured. "I know my husband more intimately than anyone else in this universe. I KNOW his heart."

"Why are you telling me this?" Jack demanded, suddenly angry beyond comprehension. He saw nothing else but the eyes of his faithful, loyal friend, and he couldn't possibly understand where Ishta was going with this. "Are you trying to get me to turn on Teal'c? Is that what you're doing?"

"I only want you to be aware," Ishta responded. "A Jaffa's passion – especially one for another - can only be truncated for so long… It is in our blood to act upon such passion."

"I can't even believe you!" Jack cried. "You're openly lying about your husband!"

"It's only a matter of time, Jack," she whispered as she ran a finger down Jack's arm.

Jack only stepped farther away, feeling sick. "This is TEAL'C, Ishta. Not some crazy Jaffa from your home planet."

"How do we know they haven't acted upon it, already?"

"They?"

"Samantha… She has been behaving oddly this evening, has she not – like one would act if she were guilty?"

"I'm not having this discussion with you, Ishta," Jack spat. "You talk to your husband."

"Jack," she murmured with a touch of her hand to his arm. "I have no husband."

"Then tell that to our children," Teal'c spoke softly from the doorway to the kitchen. The tone of his voice saddened Jack, and caused Ishta to let go of Jack as if she had been burned. As he stepped further into the kitchen, Jack could see that Teal'c had heard almost the entire conversation – enough to know that he had been the subject.

"I will not be made a fool," Ishta warned quietly as she pushed past Teal'c. "I know betrayal when I see it."

And then, just as quickly as she had come, she was gone.

Jack turned to Teal'c. The air was tense, and Jack had a feeling he wasn't going to like what was about to be said.

"Ishta and I have recently been experiencing marital discourse, O'Neill," Teal'c answered the silent question. "She is suspicious, she no longer trusts me, and we have not spoken without tension for many weeks now."

"What's going on, T?" Jack asked softly.

"Ishta is reaching the age of Sha'ronak," Teal'c answered.

"Uh… And that would be?"

"The Jaffa equivalent to menopause, O'Neill," Teal'c responded. "However, her hormonal imbalance is particularly severe because of the tretonin."

"Oh…" Jack nodded. "How'd you know about the menopause, Teal'c?"

Suddenly, it dawned on him.

"Aahh… Sam."

"Samantha explained the process to me in great detail, and has been helpful in offering ways to alleviate the stress at our home."

"But her help only aggravated Ishta further," Jack finished with a nod. "That makes sense, T."

Teal'c's response was non-verbal and unpleasant.

"I'm not saying she has a RIGHT to be mad at you," Jack explained. "I'm just saying… she's a woman. She gets testy. I mean, Sam isn't going through the… change… yet. But I'd imagine that, when she does, it won't be pretty."

Again, Teal'c did not say a word.

Jack decided to just cut to the chase as the suspense was killing him. "So, everything she just said was basically an overreaction, eh, T?"

Third time, lucky.

"Teal'c?" Jack tried again. "Ishta was just overreacting, right?"

"O'Neill," Teal'c whispered with a sigh. "I consider Samantha to be the sister I never had. I value our friendship and cherish my relationship with her."

Jack didn't say a word. He was too afraid of the impending 'but.'

"However, I must admit O'Neill, that if our lives had been drastically different to that of today…"

"You could see yourself with Sam," Jack said, his stomach sinking.

"As it were," Teal'c offered as a response, "I see her as only a sister. I love my family, and I love you, Daniel Jackson, and Samantha as siblings. I cannot imagine anything occurring differently."

"But if it had been?" Jack stressed.

"She is a warrior," Teal'c responded with a wry grin. "And I admire her for her strength and courage, just as I admire Sarah for her own talents. That is all, O'Neill. My life is with my own beautiful wife and children, just as your life is with Samantha and the wonderful children you have raised together. This life is how it should be."

Jack eyed his long-time friend for a moment before he saw the truth.

Teal'c hadn't been lying. He truly believed that this life was how it should have ended.

That's all that mattered. Right?

So why did Jack feel like he was missing something huge?

* * *

"Colonel Carter?" Felger called from the doorway of the familiar lab. He frowned. Colonel Carter was always in her lab. Like clockwork, she could be found in her lab at least 6 hours a day if her team wasn't on a mission. Where was she?

Felger, on a whim of curiosity and bravery, stepped further into the lab and took a deep breath of air. The geeks on level 26 were right: Her lab did smell better than anyone else's.

He ventured over to the table, and debated whether or not he should make himself comfortable. Before, when he had waited for her until she arrived on base, she would get a strange look in her eye – one he had seen many times during his high school days.

Normally Colonel Carter, like the compassionate, popular girl from adolescence, would control her look better than anyone else. Sometimes, however, if he caught her on a particularly bad day, the look would come in full force. And the message was clear: What the HELL are you doing in my personal space?

He half-expected Dr. Jackson or Teal'c – or BOTH – to come marching into her lab, unannounced and uncaring as to who was waiting for her valuable time. Sometimes they came with lunch for her, only to find that she was in a meeting. Sometimes they came with heavy, deep, and earth-shattering discussions that promptly made his head spin. Other times, they just came to talk. Their camaraderie was great! And, when one of them would turn to him just so, he felt like he was in on something big, something huge.

Suddenly the hairs on the back of Felger's neck stood on end, and gooseflesh formed along his arm. He hadn't felt this tense since the time SG-3 had thought it'd be a good idea to teach him a lesson in self-defense.

He turned around, expecting a burly Marine to grab him by the shoulders, but was greeted by a well-known smile. He couldn't help but grin in return. "Oh, hello Colonel Carter!"

"Hi." She was still smiling, but she looked off somehow and false in her enthusiasm. Felger smiled even broader, slightly afraid to move.

Well, at least she wasn't disgusted by his presence this time.

"How are you?" he asked nervously.

"Oh, I'm great Felger, just have to find something I left here earlier," she responded as she walked past him and towards a cabinet at the other end of the room. "How about you?"

"I'm… good! Yeah! Good!"

She unlocked her cabinet and opened the door with a slight grunt. Felger tried to get a glimpse of what she was grabbing, but couldn't quite see past her uniform.

"Yeah," he reiterated as he glanced nervously at the door. "Really good."

"That's great, Felger," she said.

Felger turned back to her, ready to ask her his long-awaited question, but stopped in mid-thought, his eyes traveling to the "thing" she had been looking for. He blinked rapidly in disbelief, his heart stopped, and all he could do was move his mouth soundlessly.

Standing there in front of her cabinet stood Colonel Carter. In her arms was… Colonel Carter.

She grinned wickedly and her eyes widened in morbid anticipation.

"Now… How can I help you?"


	7. Delusions and Dying

"So, you guys are freaking out because you have a… feeling?" Cameron asked skeptically. "What is it? Like a tingling? A warm sensation down your arms?"

"There is, indeed, no warmth involved," Teal'c answered needlessly as he led the way to Sam's lab.

"I just think we shouldn't go barging into yet ANOTHER one of her private places without, you know, knocking," Cameron argued sensibly.

"So, what do you make of your encounter with Sam back there?" Daniel countered. "You think that's normal?"

"For the SGC?" Cameron asked with a slight grin. "Absolutely."

Daniel rolled his eyes in exasperation. Sometimes, like Jack and Teal'c, Cameron was like talking to a brick wall.

"I do not like it," Teal'c said lowly. "And it has already been stated that the Samantha Carter from the quantum mirror is still in her room. She has not stirred from her slumber in over ten hours."

"Sam couldn't sleep for ten hours if she tried," Daniel muttered.

"Not ours, right?" Cameron asked.

Daniel nodded and sighed. "Right… Not ours."

"O'Neill did not trust her, and I still do not," Teal'c reminded the guys. "If he were conscious, he would have already interrogated her… again."

"Landry's trying that, isn't he?" Cameron asked. "I mean… Landry was suggested by General O'Neill for the position… He'll do the right thing."

"What is the right thing?" Daniel asked as the three reached her lab. "Since I've worked here, the line's kinda faded."

Teal'c was first to enter the lab, his body tense with apprehension. Something was definitely not right about this room.

A groan from the nearest corner brought Teal'c's weapon into the air.

"Who is there? Colonel Carter?"

A gurgle was the only reply.

"Teal'c?" Daniel asked as Teal'c approached the figure, turning him over for examination.

"It is Dr. Felger," Teal'c responded quietly. "He is injured, but his heartbeat is stable."

"Colonel…" the doctor gasped. "Car…" With a slight tilt of his head, Felger indicated what he was trying to say, the fear in his eyes evident. Cameron was already ahead of Daniel and Teal'c however. He had been drawn to the second body without even thinking about it. There, across the lab was Carter, lying at an incredibly awkward angle, and looking anything but stable.

He had never seen the two men move faster, even in battle, and it reminded him yet again that these three were like family.

Teal'c reached her before Daniel, and knelt down to Cameron's level, his eyes filled with worry. Cameron's hand was on the phone, but he just didn't know what to say. It may have been a split second's hesitation, but it felt like an eternity. Nothing could prepare him for this. He'd seen those fatally wounded in battle before, but this, in Sam's own lab, was downright heinous.

So much blood…

"Sam?" Daniel whispered, his voice low as he checked for a pulse that was barely there. Daniel looked up into Teal'c's eyes for reassurance first, before silently questioning Cameron. Cameron was speechless, but Teal'c was already responding – without words.

In one swift motion, both Teal'c and Carter were off the floor and headed for the door.

"Daniel Jackson, please follow me," Teal'c whispered. "Colonel Mitchell, please stay with Dr. Felger."

Finally finding his voice, Cameron quickly grabbed the phone, dialing digits he knew by heart. "This is Colonel Mitchell from Colonel Carter's laboratory. We've got a medical emergency headed your way, and one in need of assistance here…"

* * *

The SGC was a flurry of activity, she noted as she weaved in and out of the crowds near the elevator. Medical staff were being paged to Samantha's lab, and military staff were being extensively questioned. They would all be deceived by the amount of blood. They would all think that the wounds were fatal.

And perhaps, on a weaker person, they would've been. Even Dr. Felger, she regretfully admited, would pull through in the end.

She'd caved in the end, opting to send her Samantha to the same subspace fantasy life where O'Neill now resided, and she briefly considered sending Daniel and Teal'c there just for fun. She had neither a legitimate, nor a logical reason behind backing out of her original plan. Yet she couldn't fully neglect the relief that burrowed itself deep within.

Did she think she could eliminate her original, if she stood in the way of her plans? Without a doubt.

So what was stopping her now?

To say she'd been surprised to find that she could walk throughout the SGC undetected for such a long period of time was a bit of an understatement. A pleasant surprise indeed. And weapons were unnecessary for her and against her. She could choose if and when she wanted to take corporeal form. As it was, "Dr. Carter" was still sleeping soundly in her guarded quarters, and she would continue to sleep soundly until General Landry found the time to interrogate her again.

Naturally, she'd known that the crystal would either be in Samantha's or Daniel's lab. However, it was intuition that led her to figure out the crystal's true purpose. As she clutched the warm crystal in her hand, she felt it begin to diminish in size. It's power was seeping through her veins, warming her mind. She'd been drawn to it from the moment Samantha had come through the Stargate with it.

They foolishly intended to use it as a power source for the Stargate, she thought with a wry grin, when something of this magnitude truly belonged on Dakara. It was a power source, yes, but not for mere gate travel. This was a source of power Oma had specifically hidden for the SGC to find.

Timing, she found, could be a bitch.

It was such a pity that the most tangible power source for the protection of all humankind would be used in her plan to destroy Earth once and for all. No longer a comfortable warmth, but instead an overwhelming, searing heat that nearly pierced her hand, she began to feel the power source charge.

Yes, this source would be used well. And if nothing else, it would bring down Earth's only line of defense against the Ori. The Ori were coming. And they would be pleased to know that their power source was being put to good use. Like vultures, they would undoubtedly gather around the dead of Earth, preparing a theological feast on their souls. How pathetic.

Once again, she was absolutely heartbroken that she would have to eliminate them from this plane of existence as well. Pesky and fanatical, the Ori, Ancient rejects of the lecturing persuasion, had their sights on Earth. Given their current path, it was only a matter of time before the SGC was introduced to them.

But by then, of course, it would be too late. Whatever Oma had planned, it was much, much too late.

* * *

She was going crazy, she decided.

This is what it felt like to go crazy.

Forget the Prometheus, light years away from home and her family.

She WAS home, and she was hallucinating like the crazy woman she had become.

This fantasy world was not reality, and she refused to believe it. They were lies. All lies. They were well-crafted and enticing lies, of course, but they were still definitely lies, and no matter how hard she tried, she could not wake up from this dream.

She was not married to Jack. They did not have four children. Daniel and Teal'c weren't married to Sarah Gardner and Istha, either, and they also did not have children of their own.

The kids were all extremely close, as they had mostly known each other all of their lives. Life was not simply built around the SGC and saving the planet. It was also surrounded by pick-up basketball games, band practices, school plays, summer vacations and barbecues.

She could talk "girl talk" with Sarah and Ishta, and still have a great relationship with Daniel and Teal'c. She could carpool the kids to movies and the mall, and she could tutor Gregory when he struggled in math and Fiona when she struggled in science.

She couldn't believe it, because if she believed it, it meant that it was possible to be this ecstatically happy for seemingly no otherworldly, phenomenal reason.

It meant that she, Jack, Teal'c, and Daniel had been denied a life of fulfillment because of their fight with the Goa'uld. It meant that their ship of joy and happiness had already sailed. It meant that the path they had forged was, perhaps, the wrong one.

She couldn't believe that.

She refused to believe that.

"Whatcha thinkin'?"

His voice was painfully familiar, too familiar. The others sounded familiar, but there was something off about them. As much as she would love for her Daniel and Teal'c to be that happy, she knew it wasn't to be. Jack, however… He seemed extremely real. He seemed legitimate.

"What?" she asked quietly as she turned to face him. "What do you mean?"

"You've been acting off all night, Carter," Jack responded, before frowning to himself in thought. He hadn't called her Carter in several years.

Sam frowned as well.

"Carter…"

"Old habits," Jack supplied with a sheepish grin.

"Yeah." She sniffed unknowingly and her frown deepened.

"So, what's wrong?"

"Wrong?" Sam asked incredulously. "Nothing's wrong, Jack. I just found out that I'm going crazy. I'm having this beautiful fantasy life in this dream, and I can't wake up. It's like I'm not even sleeping. Everything's so damn real, but it's… not."

"You feel that way, too?" Jack asked with a grin. That certainly explained a lot.

"Yeah," Sam answered emphatically. "It's pretty frustrating, actually. Something tells me that this is wrong, but it feels so right. I LOVE watching Teal'c and Daniel with all of the kids. I love watching you gently tease Sarah about British culture. I even find myself loving and pitying Ishta, despite what she's done lately."

"You saw that?"

Sam simply nodded, her face tense. "I feel bad. According to Teal'c, Sha'ronak does some crazy things to a Jaffa woman's body. She doesn't even know what she's doing, but she really is hurting Teal'c. I can see it in his eyes, and I can't stand it." She turned to him once more and sighed. "And how do I know that? Sha'ronak being the Jaffa equivalent to menopause… How? It all seems real. All of it, right down to the awesome kids I thought I'd never have, the perfect house I've always dreamed of living in, and the dog."

"Even the dog?" Jack quipped.

"Even the dog," Sam assured with a watery smile, before sobering slightly. "You don't know what I'm talking about, do you?"

"Oh, I wouldn't say that, Sam," Jack said, quietly. "Just yesterday, you seemed to be completely sure of what was going on around you. Now that you're questioning this whole fantasy thing, it gives me some room to do the same."

"You didn't really suffer a horrible head injury five years ago, did you?" Sam whispered. Jack shook his head slowly as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.

"No… Now that I really think about it… I don't think I did."

* * *

"Well, thanks again Jack, Sam," Daniel yawned, pushing a half-awake Gregory out the door. "As always, it's been fun."

"Indeed," Teal'c concurred as he lifted Gia into his arms. She certainly wasn't going to be moving on her own. Without another word, he and his daughter were headed for the door as well. Ishta was already waiting in the driveway, looking none too happy to be sharing any kind of space with him for any length of time.

Motioning to Sarah, who was at the car with the others, and sending a concerned glance Teal'c's way, Daniel continued, "Well, I'll see you guys on Monday." As Teal'c walked passed Daniel, he paused and waited until he was sure Teal'c was out of earshot. Once he was in the car, Daniel turned back to Sam and Jack. "Is everything OK with Teal'c and Ishta? I, uh, couldn't help but notice that they were both a little - "

"Peeved?" Jack supplied.

Daniel merely nodded. "Yeah. What's that about?" Jack winced at the thought of having to explain the whole soap opera-like ordeal to Daniel, and opted for silence, while Sam simply shot him a look that said, _I'll tell you later_. Nodding, Daniel let it go. "Alright then. I'll let you guys get to bed. You sure you don't need help cleaning up?"

"We'll be fine Daniel, really," Sam assured.

"Exactly. Besides, that's what we have teenagers for, right?" Jack quipped.

Daniel nodded dubiously and smiled. "You got me there. You guys have a good rest of the weekend."

"You too, Daniel," Sam said with a wave. "Talk to you later."

As soon as Daniel and Sarah's car was out of sight, Jack closed the door and turned back to Sam. He'd half-expected her to launch into one of her theories as to what they were doing there and, more importantly, _why_. Instead, she remained uncharacteristically silent.

"I've got nothing, Jack," Sam admitted after a moment with a sigh. "Though I wish that wasn't the case."

Jack groaned. "Yeah, me too." Moving passed Sam, he sat down on the couch and laid his head back. For all of the confusion that the past two days had brought him, he'd been strangely at peace. A nagging thought had always gone through his head that something was off, but now that he realized that he wasn't alone, he wondered if it would make a difference.

They were living the lives of complete, happy and whole people. And they still had Daniel and Teal'c. And they were still working at the SGC, albeit in different capacities. Their relationships hadn't been bound to being on the same team of course. No, Daniel and Jack were on SG-1 and Teal'c and Sam were on SG-3. But they'd all come forward into this little alternate universe together – even if Daniel and Teal'c didn't realize it themselves – and to Jack, that was all that mattered.

In his mind, considering he'd been to Hell and back again, it didn't matter where he was, as long as he had those three with him.

"Have you completely ruled out an alternate reality?" Sam asked from his side, shaking him from his thoughts.

Jack sighed again and frowned. "I don't think that 'ruled out' is the proper term, ya know? I didn't exactly do any investigating."

"But you did wonder right?" Sam pressed, slowly placing her head to her temple. "I mean…"

Jack turned to face her as she suddenly gasped and cradled her head in obvious pain. "What? What's wrong?"

"I don't know," Sam answered, "I just feel - "

"Sam!" Immediately, Jack went to catch her as she went crashing to the floor, gasping for air and holding her chest. "Carter!"

Sam couldn't answer. For the life of her, no matter how hard she told her mouth to respond, she couldn't. The vice-like grip that took hold of her chest every ten seconds was just too much. Vaguely, she could see and hear Jack as he gripped her shoulders, but it wasn't enough to make her move of her own accord.

And then there was someone else clouding her vision. Teal'c? He'd only just left a few moments ago. But, no, there he was – standing over her in the infirmary a few feet away while men and women in white coats flew around her bed. He was covered in blood.

_Infirmary?_

"Again!" a familiar voice shouted, and immediately the electrifying grip shot through her veins again like lightning. She wasn't sure she could take another one.

Then, as quickly as the vision appeared, it was gone, and she was back on the living room floor, gasping while Jack checked her airway. If nothing else, the vision showed her that she was dreaming. None of this was real, and it was time she let go of this fantasy once and for all.

It was then that the grip spread from her chest to her throat, and from her throat to her temples, until oxygen was no longer an option and all she could do was seize. Sure that this was the end, Sam sent one last demand to her body to obey. Without warning, she shot her hand out at Jack, grasping his shirt for dear life, and willed her voice to make itself known before she lost consciousness.

"I'll figure this out."


	8. A Demand for Answers

From across the room, Daniel watched Dr. Blane work on Dr. Felger. Though he'd initially shown signs of improvement, his blood pressure was still dropping slightly. Sam had been in surgery for almost an hour now, with no word from Dr. Lam.

Sighing, he looked back at Teal'c and Cameron, two dark clouds of fury who'd failed to say a word since Sam had gone into surgery. He knew what they were thinking and feeling because he felt it too. Personally, he knew that words could not properly express how he felt about the situation. The way Sam had been brutalized and the fact that they'd been the ones to find her certainly hadn't helped either. All kinds of violent ideas went through his mind, as he thought of what would happen when they found out who did this to her.

He would always remember the way she looked when the nurses had taken the defibrillator out for Carolyn. At one point, her eyes had shot open, and she looked as if maybe she would regain consciousness. However, just as quickly as she appeared lucid, she was gone again. Both he and Teal'c had witnessed four attempts to get her heart started again, before they'd been shoved out of the way, and Sam had been wheeled into the OR. That's when he first saw the change in Teal'c.

Soon after that, Cameron had come charging in with the medical crew and Felger in tow. When he saw that Sam was in critical condition, he too changed. Daniel had opted to observe from the other side of the room. He was riddled with his own anger; he didn't need those two unwittingly adding to the emotion.

Not to mention Jack. He hadn't improved at all in the hours since they'd stabilized him.

Daniel shook his head in both annoyance and confusion. Nothing made sense here. Nothing. And just ten minutes prior, they'd been informed that the crystal SG-11 had discovered had gone missing before it could be properly analyzed. As it stood, the crystal still held a good chance of being a power source comparable to a ZPM. "Valuable" was an understatement, to say the least.

And all of this, every last bit, pointed to one person.

"The Other Samantha Carter knows something," Daniel muttered into the quiet room, not really expecting anyone to respond.

"Of that, I have no doubt," Teal'c nearly spat. Daniel raised an eyebrow as he gazed at the floor, surprised that Teal'c had even bothered to speak.

Cameron simply shifted weight from one leg to the other and tightened his arms across his chest. "What he said."

At that, Daniel turned to his two friends and nodded resolutely. "Well, I say it's time we found out what."

* * *

BAM, BAM, BAM!

Without waiting for a reply, Cameron, Daniel and Teal'c barged into the Other Carter's quarters. And, just as they'd been warned, she was sleeping.

"Wake up," Daniel said, even harsher than he intended.

Other Carter did not respond.

That was all Teal'c needed to begin using force. Reaching passed Daniel and Cameron, he took one small shoulder and shook it hard.

Other Carter mumbled incoherently, then cursed before she turned around to finally face them. Her eyes squinted at the new light, but she could clearly make out the three men at her bedside. She could see that they were anything but pleased.

Slowly, she sat up to greet her visitors. "What – what's going on?" She couldn't help but notice their combative stance. While she'd only known Colonel Mitchell for a brief time, she definitely recognized Daniel and Teal'c's glare.

"You tell us," Cameron suggested.

"What?" Samantha frowned and glanced at Daniel for clarification. "Is there something wrong?"

"Yes," Daniel said as he stepped forward. "Something is very wrong."

"What is it?" Samantha straightened. "Were you able to find the quantum mirror?"

"We haven't exactly had an opportunity to check that out yet," Cameron responded. "It seems we've been having crises left and right around here."

"Crises?" Samantha asked, puzzled. "Well, I'm sorry to hear that. But how else can you help me get home, if you don't go back to the planet?"

"Easy," Daniel began, "we don't."

Samantha's eyes widened in confusion as she stood up. Unconsciously, the guys took one collective step back. "But, I don't understand… You said you'd help me get back to my reality. You said you'd put the quantum mirror back together. You said you'd help me get back home!"

"Sit down, Dr. Carter," Daniel ordered calmly. "Please. We'd just like to ask you some more questions about your story."

Samantha complied as Daniel took a step forward. "Story?"

"Of how you got to our reality," Cameron explained. "We'd like to get as many details about that as we can."

She swallowed hard and alternately looked each man in the eye. "I – I told you everything I know, everything that happened."

"But some things still don't make sense," Daniel replied. "We'd like to make sure we've got our facts straight."

Frowning, Samantha weighed her odds of understanding these men's change of hearts. "I'm sorry, not to sound disrespectful or anything, but wouldn't it be more appropriate for us to have this discussion with the general?"

"Oh, you mean General O'Neill?" Cameron asked.

Samantha faltered, and even paled slightly at the mention of his name. "Uh… sure. He is the general of the base, isn't he?"

"Actually, no," Daniel answered. "He was only keeping the spot warm until the base CO came back from a meeting in Washington."

Samantha nodded, her relief evident. "So he's gone then?"

"You could say that." Daniel winced. "He's in a coma."

Despite her feelings about the man, she couldn't mask her shock. "What?"

"General O'Neill suffered a stroke last evening," Cameron answered, once it became apparent that neither Daniel nor Teal'c would. "The damage is extensive. They don't expect him to wake up, and if he does, he most likely won't have proper use of his motor skills again. It's pretty bad… you sure you didn't know about that already?"

"Know about that already?" Samantha frowned again, but this time, she refused to mask anything. "How could I? No one's spoken to me since two nights ago. I've basically kept to myself, slept most of the time. How could I possibly know about his stroke already?"

"You have a problem, Dr. Carter?" Cameron demanded.

"I have a problem with the idea of Daniel or Teal'c, from any reality, being unwilling to keep their promises," Samantha shot back. "I've done nothing wrong here. I just want to go home. Have you even considered entropic cascade failure? It's a horrible, horrible way to die. I need to get home now!"

Daniel paused before he stepped in. He could see that Cameron was getting emotional, and that Samantha was as well. Beside him, Teal'c looked about ready to throttle the woman. Her niceties and indignation were beginning to wan.

She didn't look or sound the least bit cognizant of the situation they were facing, yet that meant nothing. Since her arrival, all Hell had broken loose, and both Sam and Jack's lives were on the line. If she had answers, they had to get them from her before she caused any more damage.

"Did you or the General O'Neill from your reality ever find the crystal he was looking for?" he asked.

"No," Samantha sighed. "I never saw it. But he'd been extremely adamant about finding it. Look, didn't I mention this already?"

"It bears reaffirmation," Teal'c responded quietly, his rage barely controlled. "If you indeed speak the truth, repetition should not be a problem."

"Teal'c," Samantha choked, "I'm telling the truth! Why would I lie?"

"What about General O'Neill's body?" Cameron said suddenly.

Samantha swallowed again and searched his face for understanding. "What do you mean?"

Cameron rolled his eyes and barely contained a scoff, while Daniel sighed. "If you killed General O'Neill near the quantum mirror, we should be able to locate his body when we locate the mirror, correct?"

Samantha hesitated slightly, but she didn't know why. Something was wrong with this line of questioning. "Yes."

Cameron folded his arms again. Her hesitation spoke volumes. "So, you can honestly say that, should we go back to PZY-6203, we will find General O'Neill and the quantum mirror in a cave some 15 clicks away from the village."

"I, I… I don't know! Yes? I think. But that doesn't sound right..." She turned her eyes to the three men in front of her, her thoughts a mess. Something was wrong. "I know for a fact that I killed General O'Neill."

"With what again?"

She paused ever so slightly. "A rock."

"A big rock," Daniel added for clarification.

"Y-yes. He bled to death from a head wound."

"So, let me get this straight," Cameron began. "You were able to sneak up on a man, who's special ops trained, and who managed to shoot his way out of the SGC on his own while vaguely incapacitated, with a big rock? You just crept right up behind him and slammed it into his skull? Not even multiple times? Just once."

Samantha was silent. Something didn't add up.

"Now do you see why we find your story so hard to believe?" Cameron asked finally.

"Yes," she croaked. "But I don't know what else to say. That's what happened. That's… how I remember it."

Daniel glanced at Cameron and Teal'c. She'd admitted that her story was off, but she hadn't yet provided anything to explain that discrepancy. As he turned back to her, she looked like a lost girl, desperately hoping for clarification to find her, when in reality she should've had all of the answers.

"Memories can be very tricky sometimes," Daniel offered quietly. "Sometimes we think we remember things the way that they were, when in reality we've subconsciously twisted them, so we don't have to remember the horrible things that we've done."

"Horrible?" Samantha repeated breathlessly. "Horrible? What about the horrible things that have been done to me? Or have you all forgotten that?" She paused with a twitch, wondering what was making her so jumpy, but unable to pinpoint the cause. "I am not the enemy here. I've tried to move on, I've tried to get passed what happened to me, but now you want to turn this around and make me the enemy? I have been nothing but forthcoming. I haven't caused any trouble. I just want to go home. And you've been unwilling to grant me even that reassurance."

At this, genuine tears began to fall, despite her best efforts to keep them at bay. They stung her skin like acid, and once again she felt her body twitch ever so slightly. Without telling it to, she felt her hand move to wipe the tears from her eyes. These men were not her friends, they were not her family. And they would never truly understand how she was feeling.

Inexplicably, she got some satisfaction from knowing how confused they were. Despite her anger, she almost laughed in their faces.

And she couldn't shake the unquenchable desire to prove to them that she was who she said she was. That was her ultimate goal, essentially what she'd been programmed to do, and she was failing. For some reason, she completely understood where they was coming from here.

And then suddenly, light dawned, and everything made sense. A final twitch in her arm told her that it was time. She had to end it. All of it.

The men grew restless as they watched the strange woman with their friend's face watch them with eerily dead eyes. She was no longer crying, she was no longer yelling. All she could do was watch them. And occasionally, her gaze would move to the chair that was against the wall across the room and back again.

Teal'c noticed that she was gripping the sheets tightly, her knuckles white. He silently willed her to say something, anything to finally prove them wrong. He would have liked nothing more than to admit that he'd been paranoid, if it meant that the troubled woman sitting before him was innocent.

Hoping that he was giving her the courage to say more, Teal'c continued to look into her eyes for some unspoken truth. In time, he hoped she would muster the strength to tell them what had really happened. But she didn't make another sound until they collectively moved to the door, having had enough of the silence.

"Would it be such a crime if I've been lying all along?"


	9. A Rest and A Death After All

Consciousness found her in a flash of light as she popped up like a jack-in-the-box. Searching wildly, her eyes finally fell upon Jack, who was sitting a good foot or two away at her feet, his hand rested on her knee. He looked so… intense. She didn't quite know why at the moment, because all she was acutely aware of was her shortness of breath and the pounding headache that was drumming its way into her skull.

"What… happened?"

He didn't say anything for a long time, and simply opted to stare at her. After a while, he glanced at his wristwatch, up at the clock on the wall, and back at his wristwatch. Idly, he shook his wrist and tapped the watch with his finger. But he still didn't say a word.

Sam frowned. "What?"

"My watch stopped."

At that, she wasn't quite sure how to respond. "Uh… I'm sorry?"

"No. It's digital, see?" Turning his wrist for Sam to see, he pointed to the watch's face. "Stopped at 3:06 a.m.." He pointed to the clock on the wall. "It's 10:45 p.m.."

She couldn't help herself – the opportunity was just too good to ignore, and her headache really didn't warrant such trivialities. What the hell was he getting at here? "Well, that's nice."

Jack, never one to be oblivious to subtle sarcasm, least of all of the Carter persuasion, frowned. "The seconds are still going. They have been for about two minutes now."

That got her attention, though she was ready with an explanation – albeit lame. "Well, it's probably just a malfunction."

Jack smiled at her less than stellar response. Gently, he squeezed the hand that was on her knee, and nodded at her wrist. "You OK? Check your watch."

Sam nodded slightly and then complied. "Yeah… I'll be OK." She stared at her own watch for a long time, wondering if it really was a coincidence that her watch had stopped as well, but had continued to count the seconds. "5:27 a.m." Glancing up, Sam held eye contact with Jack. "The seconds are still blinking away..."

"Coincidence?" Jack asked as he moved to Sam's side.

"I guess so." She shrugged, noticing that her breathing was slowly going back to normal.

"How do you feel?" he whispered as he found a spot next to her against the couch.

"Fine." Sam winced. "How long was I out?"

"About a minute," Jack answered tightly. "You started seizing and then ya just stopped. When I checked your pulse, everything was fine. I've gotta admit: It kinda freaked me out."

Sam ignored that bit of information and his nonchalant approach, opting instead to focus on their shared predicament. She could worry about what had happened later. Much later. "You really think we don't belong here, don't you?"

"Yeah." Jack nodded. "And I've got a nagging feeling that we'll find out why soon."

"Why we're here, or why we don't belong here?"

"Both," Jack responded with a sigh. "I'm just…" He hesitated. "I'm just glad you're OK now. You are OK, right?"

She smiled, understanding his hesitation completely. "Yeah, sure. Old hat, remember?"

"Yeah…" Jack smiled at the reference, glad they were finally on the same page.

Sam smiled too as she leaned her head on his shoulder – after whatever had happened, she was exhausted. "Then there's hope for us yet, I suppose."

"We'll figure this out in the morning, Sam," Jack whispered into the silence.

"OK," Sam murmured in sleepy response. "I trust you."

"Oh, don't trust me. Trust yourself," he automatically quipped.

The sound of her breathing told him she was already asleep. He would let her sleep for a while, regain her bearings, before he woke her up. Closing his eyes briefly, Jack decided he could use some shut eye, too. Just a few minutes or so…

* * *

"Would it be such a crime if I've been lying all along?"

The question was chilling, the voice no longer recognizable. Warped and garbled, her question had stopped them cold. Teal'c was the first to turn around, and Cameron and Daniel soon followed.

She was chuckling wildly, and her eyes were glazed over in such a way that she looked a distinct cross between demonic and insane. "I wish it had all been different," she continued, her eyes growing in size. "All of it. But surely I don't have to tell any of you how unfair life can be."

Cameron couldn't reach for the door handle fast enough. Daniel and Teal'c stood frozen as they watched her eyes grow larger and larger in size, until they appeared to absorb over half of her face. Morphed almost beyond recognition, the woman on the bed curled into a ball and rocked once as she laughed again. "Remember: The copy cannot be held responsible for the original's flaws."

She closed her eyes as Daniel and Teal'c backed out of the room, never taking their eyes off of her for a second. "This will all make sense in time, guys," she promised, her voice suddenly normal again. "You'll see."

Without warning, her eyes popped open once more, zeroing in on Daniel and Teal'c's frozen forms. Her gaze struck them to the core as she allowed her legs to fall to the floor. "Jack O'Neill and Samantha Carter are dead to you now. If you wish to find them, and if you wish to join them, you need simply to ask."

Her eyes turned deadly then, changing color to a bottomless, heartless black. "However, if you would prefer to stay here, in this existence, with the life you've been given, so be it. Do not expect to have it both ways. When she comes back - and she will come back - no life will be spared."

"She?" Daniel asked, finally finding his voice.

The woman smiled and nodded. "The one who programmed me, Daniel. Nova. Believe me when I say that you'll know her when you see her."

Daniel glanced at Teal'c, but Teal'c seemed as speechless as he was.

"Your fight will be unnecessary," she continued, "and your cause trivial. She may, however, allow for the two of you to live the rest of your days in bliss with your family. You will have the opportunity, if you so choose, when the time is right… Now, let me die in peace."

Once he was sure that they were out of the way, Cameron slammed the door. The last look on her face before the door closed, however, would stick with them forever. That was not Samantha Carter, by any stretch of the imagination, or by any alternate-universal standard. If he didn't know any better, Cameron would have said that she was possessed.

"Don't let her out of that room, or have any direct contact with her, until the general comes down. Don't even talk to her," Cameron ordered the men in the hall, before turning to Daniel and Teal'c without waiting for a response. "You guys OK?"

Neither Daniel nor Teal'c responded right away as they silently walked down the hallway. Predictably, it was Daniel who spoke first.

"We have to get Landry," he said quietly, stopping suddenly. "And we have to get a transcript of that conversation from security."

"Right," Cameron agreed with a resolute nod. "That woman or creature or whatever that was in there was not Carter. And she obviously never has been. If we - "

A sudden crash from the room interrupted their conversation. The SFs stationed at the door were quick to respond. Seconds later, alarms from security began to sound, signaling a medical team to their level.

"What happened?" Cameron demanded as they stepped into the room behind the three armed SFs. The sight in front of them left no need for explanation. She had tried to hang herself by her bed sheets and the industrial fan above. The crash they'd heard had been the chair toppling over. Twitching ever so slightly, her eyes rested on the three men at the door. Her face was relatively blank, but her eyes said it all: She was pissed. At them. And maybe even at herself.

The gruesome sight was almost enough for the men to turn away, and none of SG-1 moved to actually help her. The SFs however, though obviously shocked by SG-1's inaction and apathy, managed to get her down from her makeshift noose and lay her onto the ground.

One in particular bent down to check her vitals, starting first with her pulse. His last thought was of how unusually large her eye were, when she rapidly shot her open fist into his throat and ripped out his larynx. That was enough to spring everyone to action as the two accompanying SFs opened fire on the now bloodied woman, while their fellow officer was left writhing in pain on the floor.

For the life of him, Daniel wanted to leave the room. Never before had he felt such ambivalence towards helping someone, but he was positive that the woman before him, who'd now since been shot to death seven times, was the reason for the trance in which he found himself. It took all of his effort to move to the fallen SF's aid, as Teal'c also sluggishly tried to stem the bleeding.

By then, the med team was there, and the room was covered in blood. As Daniel let them do their work, stepping away for a moment to gain his composure, he stared down at the woman-creature who'd tried to kill herself. When she'd been interrupted, she'd done what she had to do to finish the job, no matter the cost.

Judging by the bleeding, it would be a miracle if the fallen SF pulled through.

Oddly, Daniel wasn't surprised that the seven fatal bullet wounds failed to produce any blood from the woman claiming to be Dr. Samantha Carter. For some reason, it made more sense than ever.


	10. Alive and Acquiescence

"Colonel Carter has been stabilized, but she's lapsed into a coma. We suspect her body is allowing this opportunity to help with the healing process." Dr. Carolyn Lam looked from SG-1 member to member, wishing she could have given them more to go with, but honestly optimistic at the prospects. "Though she's getting quite a bit of help from our end, the comatose state is understandable when you consider the wounds she endured. If the injury to her head – or Dr. Felger's, for that matter – had been any harder or lower, I don't think we'd be able to present you with such good news."

"This is good news?" Daniel asked quietly, his tone lacking any accusations.

"Yes." Dr. Lam nodded and smiled tightly. "Though it doesn't look like it right now, Colonel Carter may be able to pull through this. All we need is time."

"Time," Cameron repeated. "Well I guess we can't really argue with that, can we?"

Teal'c merely nodded in response, though he didn't look at all comforted by the news. "What of the one claiming to be Samantha Carter?"

At the mention of the infirmary's latest entrant, Carolyn's heart jumped into her throat. There were no words to adequately express the cold dread she and her colleagues felt at the prospect of having to go back to the morgue for the impending autopsy of one Jane Doe. As it stood, she no longer bore any resemblance to Samantha Carter, human or otherwise.

And her latest discovery added another twist to the already disturbing mystery.

"When Dr. Carter was first brought in, she was, for all intents and purposes, dead."

"But…?" Daniel pressed.

Lam paused, intent on explaining their findings, but unsure of its implications. "Since her arrival, we noticed that there's still a heartbeat. Faint, but strong. An EKG showed that there's no brain activity. Dr. Blane is continuing the exam right now."

"She's brain dead, but alive?" Cameron asked incredulously. "How is that possible? She was shot seven times in the chest and stomach, point blank. No one could survive that."

"To be honest," Carolyn responded with a sigh, "I don't think she did."

"She's not human is she?" Daniel asked, as usual, being the first to put the pieces together. Carolyn turned to Daniel and nodded.

"No. Her heartbeat, along with other vital organs, appears to be synthetic, though the brain activity was real. Everything we saw Dr. Carter say and do between her first physical and now appear to have been programs. This, of course, doesn't explain the very human Samantha Carter we examined upon her arrival through the Stargate two days ago." Carolyn bent down to pick up the preliminary report and a small vile. "Beneath her skin and a few 'organs' appears to be an alloy I think we're all familiar with."

"Replicators," Teal'c guessed.

Carolyn nodded gravely. "Yes. As far as we can tell, it's been contained and the cells are wholly inactive. But only time will tell. Dr. Blane is performing the autopsy as we speak, so we'll see what else he finds. Still, I've recommended we contact Heimdall for assistance. Just in case."

* * *

Dr. Richard Blane frowned as he entered the anteroom of the base morgue, cursing Carolyn and her cronies for being "awarded" this assignment by General Landry. While typical incidents at the SGC exceeded career-high expectations on a regular basis, there were times when it all just seemed to be a bit too much.

This was one of those times.

After hearing SG-1's chilling tale of their encounter with a woman who, by all medical accounts, was an alternate Samantha Carter, no one had wanted to go near the body. It had taken a ten-minute shouting match with one of the more verbose orderlies and a very interesting conversation with General Landry, Colonel Mitchell and Carolyn to convince him that he was the man for the job.

It was that and the fact that Carolyn had just come out of an intense five-hour surgery with Colonel Carter. The real one.

Sighing, Dr. Blane gathered his notes and his digital recorder. His assistant, Dr. Huang, had left for the day, and he'd stubbornly refused to put anyone else out. He didn't trust any of them anyway.

This was going to be a long afternoon.

Pushing open the door to the morgue, his head buried in his folder, he began, "This is Dr. Richard Blane, examining Subject 5A479-0347, otherwise known as Jane Doe."

A movement at the corner of his eye stopped Dr. Blane dead in his tracks.

"Really, I prefer Sam," a familiar voice intoned before he felt a pressure on either side of his head that increased at his temples. Briefly, he heard the swift cracking of bone and cartilage before he knew no more.

Slowly she allowed the body to fall to the floor at her feet. Unable to deny the slight repulsion she felt at her actions, she stepped over the now useless man. After all, she rationalized, she had been borne of a copy of a human. Pathetic and meaningless human emotions couldn't help but remain in some capacity. That wasn't her problem now. Her initial programming had been clear prior to her interruption.

This would be her last chance to finish her creator's plan once and for all before the last strike. She would not fail.

* * *

"Mom? Mom? Mo-om…"

Sam frowned as a small voice continued to whisper incessantly into her ear. A resounding tap, tap, tap to her forehead was almost enough to make her swear. Vaguely, she remembered falling asleep on Jack's shoulder against the couch on the floor, which certainly explained the annoying twinge in her neck and back.

"Mom?!"

"Ah! Hey!" Sam caught the little finger in mid-poke as her eyes flew open. "Andrew?"

"Mmhmm?" The small boy nodded vigorously. "Good morning, Mom!"

"Hey… What are you doing up at - " she quickly glanced at the wall clock " – 0600?"

"Early riser," he whispered with a grin. "Gotta catch the worms!"

Sam chuckled slightly at the thought. "Worms?"

"Yep," Andrew said as he stood up with a resolute nod, "right after breakfast."

Sam took this moment to take in her surroundings. The sun was just rising, casting a gentle glow over the living room, and Jack was nowhere to be seen. "Ah. Where's your, uh…"

"Dad?"

Sam swallowed and grinned nervously. "Yeah."

"He's in the kitchen with Jake and Gracie. They made pancakes!"

"Mmm." Sam couldn't help but smile again, every muscle taut with exhaustion and nervous energy. "Sounds great." She had to admit, the kid was pretty cute.

"Uh huh," Andrew agreed with another nod before eagerly grabbing Sam's hand and yanking on it. Sam unconsciously shot Andrew a Look for his energy, but he merely giggled in response. And, despite the bizarre circumstances, she couldn't help but giggle as well. She'd never entertained the thought of living life this way. She'd always searched for solace and contentment in what she had. Sam knew that life was what you made it, for better or for worse. And she knew that she'd definitely lived a full life.

It wasn't until now, when she entertained the idea that it really was possible to "have it all," that she realized all she'd been missing out on.

Smiling ruefully, Sam rubbed a hand through the young boy's tousled hair, committing every detail of every thing to memory. She knew it was only a matter of time before they'd return to the reality they'd always known, but she'd decided she wouldn't be able to leave peacefully without remembering how life could've been.

The moment was over as quickly as it came. "OK, I'm up," Sam assured with a grunt as she stood up and stretched her legs. "I'm up."

"Good!" Andrew replied loudly as he grabbed Sam's hand once more. "I'm starving and Charlie's a pig. Let's go!"


	11. A Mission and A Visitor

"As it stands, the base is on lockdown until further notice," General Hank Landry told the large group of rapt SG team leaders who were assembled around the briefing room table. "The Joint Chiefs have been notified of the situation, and are standing by for any developments. All SG teams have been rerouted to the Alpha Site per SOP. We are currently locked out of all local systems, with the exception of the Stargate, thanks to a remote unit within the Pentagon. However, there's still the matter of PXY-6249, which is where the now missing power source was found."

At that, Landry glanced towards the three remaining members of SG-1 who were lurking in the back of the room.

"Will we be sending a team back to 6249, sir?" Cameron asked gruffly.

"That is the plan, Colonel," Landry answered with a nod. "Colonel Reynolds, I'd like your team to accompany SG-1. Colonel Patterson, we're going to need your help in continuing to secure the base - "

"Um, I'm sorry to interrupt, General," Daniel cut in, "and forgive me, but is it really wise to establish a wormhole with the replicator duplicate loose on the base?"

"We need to find out more about that power source, Doctor," Landry responded firmly. "Colonel Carter mentioned that there were areas in the dome where the Stargate is housed that contain alien text, possibly Ancient. Now, I may be wrong, but I believe that that's your expertise. If we have any hope of countering what the replicator has already set into motion, we're going to need a better understanding of what we're dealing with. Is that clear?"

Daniel nodded, noting Landry's tenseness. He'd been pretty ticked off since he landed. "Yes, sir."

Landry fixed all three of them with a hard stare, as if assessing their various states of mind. "Now that that's settled, we have the matter of base security. Colonel Patterson, I know we recently spoke of a fail safe mechanism…"

* * *

"Is it me, or did Landry seem extraordinarily pissed in that briefing?" Cameron asked as the three of them kitted up alongside SG-3. As Walter began the dialing sequence, Reynolds glanced at Cameron furtively before checking his own pack. Despite Reynolds' attempts to look away in time, Cameron caught it. "What?"

"Well…" Reynolds paused, not sure how to address the issue at hand. "According to General Landry, the JCs and the IOA are all pretty pissed at us right now. They don't understand why General O'Neill let this other version of Colonel Carter on the base, they don't understand why the power source wasn't properly secured. They're placing a lot of blame on General O'Neill, and General Landry's receiving the brunt of their anger."

At that, Daniel frowned, rolling his eyes and trying his best not to go with his knee-jerk response.

"That assessment is foolish," Teal'c responded simply.

"Exactly," Daniel agreed. "We've let how many people from alternate universe onto our base over the past nine years? And they want to choose now to question it?"

"They're saying this all could've been prevented," Reynold said with a shrug as he glanced around the Gateroom. "I don't agree with the two-faced bureaucrats who've never even stepped foot on this base. But that's the skinny of it. The IOA has gotten heavily involved. Half of them think we're hiding the power source so we can use it to our liking."

"What?" Cameron demanded. "Are you serious?"

"That's ridiculous!" Daniel cried.

Reynolds nodded grimly. "I agree. But all of that considered, General Landry's under the fire and probably will be until long after this is settled… if it's ever settled."

"They think this is the end, don't they?" Daniel asked quietly. "They think that this is one misstep too many."

"To be honest, I don't know what exactly goes through their minds, Dr. Jackson," Reynolds admitted. "But I'd imagine you're on the right track. This could all end very badly."

Silence prevailed as Walter announced that the seventh chevron was locked. The men found their gaze on General Landry, whose dark presence loomed behind Walter in the control room. He didn't say a word.

Teal'c shared a glance with Daniel and Cameron before fixing his attention on the event horizon. "Then let us ensure that it does not."

* * *

"… Needless to say, it was a rough night," Daniel recounted to Sam over the phone as she cleaned up the kitchen from that morning's cooking escapades. Somehow it didn't compare to the wet pancake mix and flour that she had spent nearly 15 minutes washing out of Grace's hair. "And then Teal'c called me this morning, wanting to know if I'd like to go to the museum with him."

Sam frowned. "But Teal'c hates the museum."

"Yeah," Daniel drawled. "That's exactly my point."

"What'd you say?"

"I said that that'd be a great idea, and that I'd meet him at 1."

"Oh boy," Sam whispered with a sigh, still finding this entire predicament too bizarre to comprehend. "Well, how are the kids?"

"Matt and Addie actually went over and picked up Layna and the girls," Daniel answered with a sigh of his own. "Which was really good. They're gonna go have some ice cream in the park. I'm sure they'll meet up with Charlie later."

Glancing behind her through the window above the sink, Sam disagreed with that assessment. Jack had been tip-toeing around the subject all morning, but it was made abundantly clear that he didn't have a clue how to touch the issue with this Alternate Universe Charlie. He'd been sending the young man furtive glances, enough to make the teen think that he was in trouble. And now they were playing field hockey – bad knees and all – in the backyard for the first time, as far as Charlie was concerned, in two years.

"Maybe," Sam said, hoping Daniel wouldn't pick up on the tone of her voice.

"What does that mean?"

After all the years she'd known him, that had been idiotic at worst, wishful thinking at best.

Sam decided to play along with the usual game of 20 Questions. "Hmmm?" If she was truly honest with herself, she didn't mind these moments with Daniel one bit.

"You said 'maybe' in that odd way that you do when you know something someone else doesn't."

"Why Dr. Jackson, I don't know what you're talking about!"

Daniel sighed, though there was a hint of amusement hidden in there somewhere. "Sam… I don't have time for this."

"Is it almost 1 already?" Sam cracked again.

This time, the sigh gave way to a very irritated groan. Having mercy on him, Sam decided to throw him a bone. "OK, OK. To be honest, Jack and Charlie have been at each other's throats lately. Today they're having some much needed and long overdue father-son time, just the two of them." Sam smiled contentedly as she watched Jack give Charlie a hard time over his off-the-wall "techniques". "I'm just really, really… happy that they're together again, after being separated for so long."

"Wow, Sam," Daniel chuckled. "I know the two of them have had some issues in the past. But by the way you talk about it, you'd think they hadn't seen each other in years!"

"It's certainly felt like that. For both of them, I think."

Something in Sam's heart abruptly stung at the thought. She'd spent less than 24 hours with these kids, and she couldn't fathom what it would be like to live without them once things were returned to normal. She still couldn't imagine what Jack had gone through for so many years, but she was beginning to get an idea.

"Well, I'm happy if you're happy," Daniel said softly, obviously noting the seriousness of the situation.

Sam sniffed unexpectedly and smiled. "Thanks, Daniel. And tomorrow, if you'd like me to tag-team with you for Teal'c, just let me know."

"Will do," Daniel said emphatically. "Talk to you later."

"See ya later, Daniel."

Sam hung up the phone and stared at it for a long time, relishing in the conversation about the relatively mundane with Daniel. It'd been so long since they'd been able to talk to each other so idly. Too many chaotic circumstances and sticky situations had left them on edge over the past two years. If she could trace back to when exactly she'd started feeling the two of them drift apart, she would've had to say when he descended. He'd been busy, she'd been busy. He'd changed while he was gone, and so had she. And somehow, in the midst of nearly losing Jack, Earth and the whole galaxy, they just hadn't been able to connect like they had before. She knew it was a mutual issue that they would eventually need to remedy once she and Jack got back home. Now more than ever…

This new life was tempting in every way. Though she tried to find the trap, the hidden truth to the fantasy, she could find nothing. And she'd be damned if she wasted away what little time she had left in this existence waiting for the other shoe to drop. Judging by Jack's behavior, as he had now teamed up with Grace and Andrew opposite Charlie and Jake, he'd obviously been thinking the same thing.

Watching from the window, Sam allowed her mind to drift to what was awaiting her at "her" lab on Monday morning – a new toy Daniel and his team had found on PZY-9261. She thought of Grace's first soccer practice that Tuesday, and of Andrew's T-ball practices the Thursday after that. And she thought of the people on PZY-9261, whom she'd be meeting personally alongside Teal'c and the rest of SG-3 and SG-7 on Friday. Assuming, of course, she and Jack hadn't made it back home yet.

Was it possible to have it all?

No, she decided. Not in reality. At least, not in hers. The time to have all of THIS had long since passed.

Sam smiled, despite that melancholy truth. But this reality would do. It would do just fine for now. Until she and Jack could get back home.

A firm knock on the front door jolted Sam out of her thoughts. Glancing back outside, Sam headed to the door. When the person knocked again, Sam frowned. They weren't expecting anyone, were they? Maybe they were the neighborhood kids, looking to get in on all the shouting and screaming in the backyard.

Not used to answering the door to strange youngsters, and remembering how welcoming her own mom had been to her friends and how popular that had made her as a result, Sam firmly fixed her smile, determined to get this right.

"Why, hello - " Sam stopped short, realizing much too late that her eyes were fixed on the blue-jean thighs of a grown man. Slowly, she tilted her head up until she came face to face with the non-child on her porch. "Cameron!" This was a surprise.

"Sam!" Cameron parroted.

Sam smirked at his attempt at humor, and placed a hand on her hip. "What brings you here on this fine Saturday afternoon?"

"General O'Neill actually invited me over on Friday as a sort of impromptu welcome to the SGC. He said he wanted me to meet his family." Cameron smiled admiringly. "He also said, in not so many words, they they're the most important people in his life. So, here I am."

"Oh!" Sam smiled tightly, glad to see another familiar face (even if he didn't seem to be THEIR Cameron). "Well, that's… random."

"I agree," Cameron returned with a chuckle. "But I rather liked finding out what you've done with yourself over the past ten years." Suddenly his gaze fixated on a spot above Sam's eyebrow.

"What?" Sam slapped a hand to her forehead, scrubbed slightly and took a look at the contents on her fingers. Pancake mix. Cute. Glaring at Cameron from below her eyelashes, Sam stepped out of the way and made a sweeping gesture inside the house. "Come on in, Cameron."

Cameron obeyed, and gave the front room a generous and curious once over. "So you turned out to be Superwoman, after all!" He turned back to her then and clapped her on the shoulder, reminding her of times she didn't really remember. They'd graduated the same year here, rather than two years apart like in her reality. Strange difference, but not wholly unexpected in the slightest, given the nature of this universe.

"If I'm Superwoman, so is every other working mom in this galaxy," Sam replied.

"Tomato, tomato," Cameron scoffed. "Your house is immaculate, you've had three kids and you don't look a day or a pound over 30, your kids are evidently God's gift to mankind if General O'Neill has anything to say about it, and you're still happily married. Oh, and you've got a mightily successful career in the Air Force, to boot. You tell me that's not Superwoman's curriculum vitae and I'll eat my hat."

Sam stared at him for a moment, amused at the unashamed bluntness with which this Cameron treated her. If Daniel was her caring and compassionate brother, and if Teal'c was her quiet and protective brother, Cameron had definitely always been like a direct and straight-to-the-point cousin. Finally, she deadpanned, "You're not wearing a hat, Cameron."

Sighing, Cameron placed a hand to his eyes. "Ugh, it's the principal of the thing, Carter. Must you be so literal?"

"Yes, she must." Jack's voice came casually from the kitchen as he headed towards the living room. "But you'll get used to it after a while. Again." Cameron subconsciously straightened a hair's breadth away from attention in Jack's presence, and Sam swallowed a smirk. Yes, Cameron was crass and obnoxious to a point. But when it came to the Big Cheese, he was a consummate professional.

"General, sir. Good to see you, sir." Cameron nearly barked, causing Sam to both jump and chuckle at the same time.

"Cut out the sirs today, Mitchell, and I promise this will go a lot smoother," Jack suggested with a grin of his own. "How are ya?"

"Good, sir," Cameron said with a grimace, "and you?"

"Fantastic." Jack drew a blank then, glancing at Carter and back at Cameron. "Do you know why you're here today?"

"To meet the O'Neill crew," Cameron answered, just barely biting back the "sir."

Jack nodded. "OK, then. They're all in the backyard – every last one of them – and they're probably gonna drill you, and then try to get you to play a game of hockey. You know how to play?"

"Absolutely, sir! Love the sport!" Cameron exclaimed, avoiding Sam's gaze. They both knew he'd never been particularly interested, always equating the players to angry football rejects.

"Then go get 'em, Tiger!" Jack ordered with a nod towards the back door. "Oh, and make sure you pick the cute one with pigtails and the runt with a missing front tooth to be on your team. They're MVPs."

"Sure thing!" Cameron barely faltered as he headed out to the backyard.

Sam smiled and prepared to follow him, wondering what horrors he'd face after being thrust upon those children, with hockey sticks no less. But something was nagging at the back of her mind. Something about fantasies and parallel realities. Sam didn't give it much thought. "Why didn't you tell me you invited him to come over today?" she sing-songed quietly as they slowly made their way to the kitchen.

"I didn't. I thought you did," Jack returned in kind. "And what's with the split personalities? One minute he's boisterous, the next he's respectful to a fault."

"Yes," Sam pondered this. "It reminds me of a few other officers I know. Actually, one, to be specific."

"Impossible!" Jack mock-exclaimed. "Such officers don't exist!"

"Uh huh." Sam rolled her eyes. "Sure."

"Listen," Jack stopped then, and grabbed Sam by the shoulder, reminding her of the source of that nagging feeling all over again, "if he's occupying the kids – which will probably be until one of us relieves him – this will give us a chance to get some things in order. Now - "

"Wait," Sam held up a hand, "first thing's first. We have a problem."

Jack frowned, immediately concerned. "What?"

"Teal'c. Daniel called a short while ago. He said Ishta and Teal'c had a huge fight once they got home that led into the morning. Ishta has since disappeared, and Teal'c invited Daniel to the museum."

Jack's eyes grew wide. "The museum? Uh oh."

"Exactly."

"So what'd you and Daniel decide?"

"He'll be with him today, unless and until Ishta shows up again. Otherwise, I'll tag-team him tomorrow morning. Maybe the kids can come here and spend the night or something."

"Sure, sure." Jack nodded. "Whatever works for the big guy." Sighing, he rubbed a hand through his hair. "Well, this has become quite a mess, hasn't it?"

"Yeah." Sam nodded, until she remembered that she'd interrupted him. "So, I'm sorry, what were you going to say?"

Jack opened his mouth, as if to speak, and then promptly closed it. Chuckling, he shook his head. "I don't remember!"

"Uh oh. First Cameron's invitation, and now this?" Sam smirked. "Old age finally creeping up on ya?"

Jack narrowed his eyes with a hint of mirth. "Would you prefer I said I was distracted by you?"

"Sure, I can buy that," Sam replied with a smirk. "It was the eyes, right? Had a bit of a sultry look as I reminded you of your age, didn't they?"

It was Jack's turn to smirk now, as he took Sam by the shoulders and spun her around to face the mirror on the wall. "Actually, I think it was the smudged pancake mix all over your forehead. Pretty sexy."

A/N: OK, I told myself I wasn't going to do any of these, but I thought I'd thank those of you who posted the very kind comments. I really appreciate them.


	12. Divergence

Walter watched as the Stargate automatically shut down, SG-1 and the others having made it through to PXY-6249 without incident. He could feel General Landry behind him, a stony and dark presence that otherwise would've been quite typical after a bad day. Today, however, was a different story. General Landry had barely spoken a word to anyone unless it was to bark orders.

When he first arrived, he'd been furious, but at least willing to listen to what had happened. It wasn't until he went into his office, drew the curtains and spoke to the Pentagon that his mood began to change. Since then, he'd been like a brick wall. And though he hated to admit it, Walter wondered if it wasn't completely justified.

That wasn't to say that the SGC hadn't met its fair share of problems head on in the past – and had pulled through in the end. And it certainly wasn't to say that General O'Neill didn't have the capacity to make good decisions, or honest mistakes for that matter. In his year at the helm, the SGC had done just fine. Even now, General Landry was implementing the same procedures General O'Neill and Colonels Reynolds and Carter had enacted when Anubis had wreaked havoc on the base. And it would be ignorant of someone to blame him for a mistake that anyone could've made under the same circumstances. It was per the SGC's unspoken policy that refugees from other dimensions were at least given a chance. And it had been an alternate Colonel Carter, after all.

Still, judging by the state of affairs in Washington and the concern in General Landry's eye, it looked as if some people wouldn't be nearly as understanding. There was also the matter of General O'Neill and Colonel Carter's health, which had been left to Dr. Lam's discretion while fires were extinguished via telephone.

Walter hoped they'd be able to find this doppelganger's weakness soon, before two of the SGC's likeliest problem-solvers met an untimely end - and before the IOA found a way to shut down the SGC, once and for all.

* * *

"Any luck, Daniel?" Cameron asked, peeking over Daniel's hunched shoulder. Daniel refrained from rolling his eyes, settling for a sigh instead. 

"Well, it's definitely Ancient," Daniel announced needlessly.

Reynolds turned around from his spot at the doorway of the large dome that housed the Stargate and shot Daniel a look. "You said that twenty minutes ago."

"I know, but look, it's beyond jumbled here," Daniel prattled. "Sentences that would normally make perfect sense are like, like… riddles." Following the words on the wall with his finger, Daniel quietly mouthed the foreign words. "'If the… with…' Hmmm." He stopped.

"Hmm?" Cameron repeated. "Hmmm, what?"

"It basically says, 'If the destruction of evil is found, treasure is near.'"

Captain Bob Meux frowned and glanced back at Colonel Reynolds. "You're right, that makes no sense."

Daniel squinted at the complexities of the wall of inscriptions, sure there was an answer there somewhere. "But see, the two words that don't make sense, given the sentence structure, are 'matreveo' – the destruction of evil – and 'ganule' – which is normally used in the context of treasure."

"Normally?"

Daniel stood back from the wall and rubbed a hand through his hair, before turning back to face the others. "Well… oddly enough, it can also be translated as 'crystal.'"

"Now that makes sense," Cameron enthused. The others nodded in agreement, not quite understanding why Daniel wasn't satisfied.

"Well, I'm glad SOMEONE'S made sense of that babble over there," a distinctly feminine voice called from the shadows. Instantly all men turned to the sound of approaching footprints from deeper within the dome with guns raised. "I was beginning to wonder if I'd been cheated."

"Come out and keep your hands where we can see them," Reynolds barked into the shadows, the source of the voice still hidden in the darkness of the abandoned arena. Daniel ignored the slight annoyance he felt at Reynold's tone, understanding the reasons behind it. The woman who'd managed to elude their discovery could've contained any number of threats. And they didn't need any more surprises.

"Alright, alright," the stranger replied loudly as she stepped out into the light, "no need to get excited. I'm here, and I'm unarmed."

"Who are you?" Teal'c responded, obviously not caring if she was armed or not.

The woman, whose face was slightly smudged but was otherwise rather attractive, refastened her long black hair into a sort of messy bun and scoffed. "I hardly see how my identity has any bearing on this chance encounter. You're obviously looking for the Ancient Emerald, and I can tell you right now that it's not here. Somebody's already come and claimed it."

"Yeah, that would be us," Cameron replied, taking a step forward. "We discovered it a few days ago."

She frowned in thought and shook her head, clearly bemused. Finally, she swallowed and raised a solitary finger in the air. "How much?"

Major Alex Shue nearly choked on a chuckle. "What?"

"It's a simple question," she answered haughtily. "How much for the emerald? Surely you have a price?"

"As much as we'd love to haggle," Cameron drawled, "we can't name a price, because we don't have it."

The woman opened her mouth as if to reply, and then soundly closed it again. "But… I thought you just said that you discovered it a few days ago?"

"We did," Reynolds responded, shooting a glare at Cameron, "but it's since… gone missing."

"You mean somebody stole it."

It wasn't a question. Yet nobody answered.

Slowly a smile came to the strange woman's face as she surveyed the group of people, her eyes finally landing on Daniel. "You. You read Ancient."

Again with the non-question. Daniel nodded.

"And other languages, too?"

Daniel stared at her for a moment, attempting to read her as he often did strangers off-world, but came up empty. Behind those laughing eyes was a solid wall. "Yes."

She nodded succinctly then, and chuckled lightly to herself as she took another step forward, her hands still in the air. Finally, she let her hands fall to her sides. The men who'd grown lax with their weapons, brought them up to eye level once more.

"I tell you what," she said, her eyes focused solely on Daniel, "I let the rest of your people go through the Chappa'ai in exchange for you."

Reynolds looked at his gun, turned around and glanced at the others, before laughing slightly at the woman. The others followed in suit, clearly amused. "You'll let us go? Ma'am, I mean no disrespect, but you're not really in the position to be making any decisions right now."

"Oh?" she asked, tapping a discreet bracelet on her wrist. "You'd be surprised."

Immediately, a wave of energy washed over the men, taking their weapons with it and slamming them into the walls behind them. Those who were fast enough to go for their sidearms found them effortlessly slapped away, and received a shock for good measure. Before they could respond, they were all on the ground, crushed by the same force that had left them defenseless in the first place.

The woman sighed then, obviously troubled as she looked at the helpless men on the ground. "I'm sorry. I really hate to do that, but I'm not all that fond of big, projectile weapons to begin with. They're just a bit extreme, don't you think? In fact, one word comes to mind: Overcompensation."

Quickly she walked over to a clear spot between Reynolds and Teal'c, and hunkered down to their level. She didn't miss the brief look of fear pass over Reynolds' face, nor the lingering murderous glare of Teal'c's from several feet away. "Since you're obviously the leader, I'm going to give you your options: You and your people can go back through the Chappa'ai in exchange for the language specialist." She paused then and grinningly caught the eye of Teal'c. "And Muscles here." Turning back to Reynolds, she continued, her eyes no longer shining with any sort of humor. "Or, I can keep you here, under the Burden, for the rest of your undoubtedly short lives. Tell me, what will it be, kind sir?"

Reynolds swallowed and glanced at his men. If he thought his presence would mean anything to the woman, he'd gladly take both Dr. Jackson and Teal'c's place. But it seemed she had her own agenda, one she'd been cultivating for a while now. And he really wasn't in the position to be making any bargains.

He closed his eyes in acceptance, and immediately felt the weight – the Burden, she'd called it – lift off of his lungs, giving him a chance to breathe properly.

"Do not attempt to use your weapons until you're through the Chappa'ai," she warned. "They will have no effect on me, and will only result in your death."

Once everyone else was unburdened, so to speak, the woman tapped her bracelet again.

Bracing themselves for another attack, they nearly missed the opportunity to catch their weapons as they went skittering back across the ground. After gathering all of the loose weapons sans Daniel's and Teal'c's (Reynolds and Cameron grabbed them upon the woman's order), the men headed back to the other side of the dome, where the Stargate stood in the distance. Daniel and Teal'c were instructed to hang back several feet in front of the woman, while the others led the way up ahead.

Reynolds could feel Cameron staring at him, wondering if this was all leading up to some grandiose, last-ditch effort to save Daniel and Teal'c. Minutely he shook his head, sorry to admit that he had no viable plan. This was the kind of decision they prepared soldiers for in basic training. The sacrifice of the few for the good of the many. It wasn't always as clear and concise as they made it sound, but it somehow made sense nevertheless.

Cameron, despite his feelings to the contrary, agreed that the best bet would be to head back through the Stargate so they could check in with the general and get reinforcements. He glanced at Daniel and Teal'c. Teal'c looked beyond angry, most likely at the prospect of not being able to check on Carter and General O'Neill's progress, and Daniel looked about ready to formulate an argument of some kind – most likely to that end.

Really, though, neither man said a word. He pondered that for a moment, remembering that this wasn't exactly new to either of them. Both had been at this game for a long time.

The woman hadn't said a word since Reynold's acquiescence, either. As Cameron studied her features, committing them to memory, he couldn't help but think that she looked rather regretful. Almost sad, even.

It certainly wasn't the face of a cold-hearted killer. Cameron made sure to file that bit of information away for future reference, before he glanced ahead as Captain Meux dialed home.

Though he was concerned for Daniel and Teal'c's safety, that unguarded insight into the woman's state of mind kept Cameron at mild ease. For the moment. Now all he worried about was what would happen once they got back to the SGC.

Landry was going to be pissed.

* * *

She turned to Daniel and Teal'c as the rest of their men walked through the Chappa'ai, one in particular hanging back for but a fraction of a moment. She could understand their concern, really she could. But she'd already made up her mind. She would need the two of them to enact her plan, and they'd just have to deal with it. 

"If we're going to be helping you, shouldn't we at least know your name?" Daniel inquired.

She frowned at his continued insolence. "What?"

"Your name," Daniel repeated, his patience waning. "I'm Daniel Jackson, and this is Teal'c."

She gasped before she could stifle it, and took a step away from Teal'c. Yes, she'd heard of "The Sholva," as her own personal hell had called him. Deep down, she'd always reveled in the way his name evoked such subtle terror within the hearts of the spineless Goa'uld. He represented their greatest fears, and his following had multiplied a hundred-fold since she'd first heard of him so long ago. She admired him and his cause immensely.

Daniel glanced between her awestruck stare and Teal'c's impatient glare. "Uh… I take it you've heard of him?"

She simply nodded, before returning her heavy gaze to Daniel's expectant one. "My name is Vala Mal Doran. And, with any luck, our alliance will be very brief." With that, she walked passed the two men.

Teal'c growled as she barely brushed by him, nearly causing her to misstep. Even Daniel was a bit surprised. "Teal'c" he asked. "Something wrong?"

"She is a Goa'uld," Teal'c spat. "So our 'alliance' indeed shall be very brief."

Eyes widening in shock, and despite his better judgment, Daniel hurried after Vala. She did not move, her eyes looked quite pained. He stopped short of barraging her, but only just. "What exactly are your plans for us?"

Vala sighed and shrugged. "I need your help – both of you – but you're going to have to trust me."

"Trust you?" Daniel almost laughed. "You used a weapon on us that could've killed us, after pretending like you were unarmed. Then you sent our friends home without us, after threatening them with their lives. It also turns out you're a Goa'uld. And you want us to trust you?"

"Yes," Vala answered flatly, nonplussed by his passionate rant and deliberately ignoring his comment about her being a Goa'uld. "And, in return, I'll do my best to make it all worthwhile for you. I promise you that."

Daniel glanced once more at Teal'c, as if gaining silent insight from the menacing man. Vala found herself entranced by this wordless communication between them. She wondered if this would become a serious problem later.

After finally nodding to Daniel, Teal'c turned back to their captor. "What are your plans?"

She found herself grinning again, tipping her hand a bit to let them see just how much they were needed. And they were definitely needed.

She'd been without company for so long, their presence would be a welcome respite from her rather torturous solitude. Maybe, in time, she'd be given the opportunity to make it up to them. Maybe even become their friends.

"Follow me." Leading the way back to the wall where they'd first met, confident in her shield and the men's inability to harm her, Vala smirked at her own naivete. Of course they'd never truly trust her, let alone befriend her. She'd just have to enjoy their company while it lasted.

In the meantime, she would allow the language man a few more hours at the wall, before heading out.

Judging by the resolute way each man marched behind her, they would do all they could to hasten her plans.

Or, perhaps, to foil them.


	13. Decisions

The wind blowing through the trees reminded him of his childhood home in Broklar, a small village of humble beginnings where he and his mother stayed for years before his father's death. The trees had always comforted him, soothed his soul. 'Krobei,' or Peace Trees, were rare – about as rare as true peace, he supposed.

Teal'c was glad she'd taken him here.

"I wish I knew how to make this better," Sam whispered as she threw a pebble over the bridge and into the lake.

"It is not your problem to solve," Teal'c replied, "nor Daniel Jackson's, nor O'Neill's."

Sam nodded, agreeing with that honest and obvious assessment. But he was still wrong. "When you hurt, we hurt, Teal'c," Sam countered. "You can't deny it's the same for you."

He agreed with a sigh, for as she said, it was the same for him, no matter how illogical it seemed to him at times. His years with the Tau'ri had fostered beliefs and feelings within him that offended Jaffa logic. Still, he could not deny that it was as second nature, which was why he was so inclined to be transparent about his concerns even now. "I fear for our children, should Ishta's condition worsen."

She didn't know what to say in reply. It wasn't Teal'c's way to accept empty platitudes, and it wasn't her way to offer them without faith in what she was saying.

So far they hadn't heard from Ishta in over 24 hours. Sam had every confidence that she would come back eventually, but suggesting that all would be well upon her return would be foolish.

"I do wish to remain wed to Ishta," Teal'c said into the silence, most likely more to himself than to Sam.

"Of course." Sam felt her throat constrict slightly. "It won't always be like this."

Teal'c swallowed back the emotions that arose in the back of his throat and blinked several times. "No." None of it went unnoticed by Sam.

Throwing another pebble into the lake, she sighed. She'd woken up that morning with a feeling of dread, having realized that both she and Jack had completely forgotten over the course of the previous afternoon that they simply did not belong in this universe. It had been so easy – quite possibly out of her control – to forget the truth.

Like a distant dream, Sam's most recent memories of the SGC and her reality were fading away. If nothing sparked her drive to solve this problem, the knowledge that she was blissfully losing herself in this alternate-fantasy world did. It was time to find the source. She'd already resigned herself to that fact, and Monday would be the day.

Coughing, Sam also found herself swallowing back the sudden wave of emotion that hit her without warning. "I'm really gonna miss this," she whispered without thinking.

It took Sam a few moments to realize that Teal'c was staring at her in his version of abject horror, and upon retracing her words, she realized that he must've been thinking the worst.

"Oh, Teal'c," she very nearly told him everything. "That came out totally wrong."

Teal'c's expression did not change.

"I just mean…" Sam couldn't think of a seamless lie fast enough - not one that he'd buy anyway - and she had no desire to burden Teal'c with the truth. So instead, she opted for a watery smile and a subject change. "You ever feel like life's moving a bit too quickly?"

Teal'c fixed her with a water, yet disbelieving, smile of his own and nodded. "I am 108 Earth years old. I cannot help but feel my days are numbered."

"No!" Sam exclaimed, nearly punching him for his bluntness. "I meant, ya know, with the kids and moments like this. The trees look so serene, as if time is standing still, yet all around us the world is moving on. Time is moving on." She shook her head, wondering – yet knowing all the same – why she was feeling so broody. "In another life, I have no children, which used to mean very little to me. But perhaps it's what children can represent? You know, love, family, second chances, time… In another life, I think I might not have a complete grasp of that. Time. Children aside, there's a me out there who just doesn't GET it. Does that make sense?"

Teal'c watched her for a long time and pondered her words as a strange feeling passed through his gut. Finally, he blinked and stated, "Our reality is the only reality of consequence."

Sam agreed whole-heartedly, but couldn't shake the nagging question that plagued her mind: "What if I'm not sure which reality is mine?"

* * *

"Explain to me again how your team was unable to secure the dome, and was then overtaken by a woman with a flashy bracelet?"

Colonel Reynolds did his best to make eye contact with the seething general as he swallowed hard. "That, uh, that about sums it up, sir. She appeared unarmed, and she literally came out of nowhere. But she did say she was looking for the crystal."

Landry shook his head in confusion, his lips slightly parted. "Did she say why?"

Reynolds swallowed, knowing he wasn't going to give Landry much to go on. "No, sir. All she said was that she needed Dr. Jackson and Teal'c to help her with something. Some plan. When we dialed back to the planet, we were able to establish a stable wormhole, but the MALP was destroyed as soon as we made contact."

He watched as General Landry nodded, muttered something under his breath and sat back in his chair, looking every bit as defeated as Reynolds felt. Finally, Reynolds cleared his throat and asked the question that had been on his mind since they'd arrived through the gate fifteen minutes before. "What of General O'Neill and Colonel Carter's condition, sir?"

Landry sighed and folded his hands on the desk in front of him. "Dr. Lam is noting a mild improvement in both General O'Neill and Colonel Carter, however she hasn't seen signs of them waking up any time soon."

"And what of the replicator duplicate, sir?"

"Well, she's not been apprehended, if that's what you're asking," Landry snapped. "We haven't seen hide nor hair of the woman since we began the search, which of course is to be expected." He paused then, assessing the colonel's state of mind. "Now, to the dissection of the base… You've been assigned to Level A, levels 25 through 28. Major Lombaugh could really use your help with the scientists over there. Let Colonel Mitchell know he's been assigned to Level B, levels 22 through 26, with Major Franco."

"Yes, sir."

"Do you have anything else to add, Colonel?"

"No, sir."

Landry sat back in his chair again and nodded. "Dismissed." Shooting Landry an understanding and sympathetic nod, Reynolds left his office, prepared to help where he could, but not sure he would be contributing much in the long run.

Sighing for the umpteenth time that day, Landry rubbed a hand over his face. It really had been a terrible few days, and this recent development of Daniel and Teal'c's capture was certainly not helping. Ever since he'd arrived, he'd felt completely helpless, a weight constantly pressing down on his lungs. And he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched at all times. He'd been unable to get a decent night's sleep because of it. Paranoia. He sighed, feeling his fatigue and restlessness overcome him once more. "You're losing it, Hank," he whispered to himself. "You're really losing it."

"Oh, come now, General," a silky voice from the shadows in the corner returned. "You're being a little too hard on yourself, don't you think?"

Dumbstruck, Landry scrambled from his desk and stood defensively. One glance at the door told him the guards hadn't heard her. But he had, clear as day. "Listen," he whispered, "I don't know why you're on this base, but - "

"Silence."

The voice was closer now. And quieter. The guards still heard nothing. Their backs remained to the doorway, their stance was relatively casual. Too casual. Sucking in a breath of air that stuck to his throat, Landry moved until his back was to the wall. He tried to find his voice, but his vocal chords would not respond. It wasn't until his head hit the bottom of a certificate, and he began to feel cool tendrils work their way up his neck, that he realized it was too late.

"Sssh," she cooed, her fingers moving through his hair like that of a child's. He still couldn't see her. "I'm not going to hurt you."

"What do you want?" Landry hissed into the darkness.

Her smile appeared in the encroaching shadows at his side first, before her eyes shone at his level, bluer than the real Colonel Carter's and more sinister. Like the Cheshire Cat, her deadly grin intensified with his fear. "General, I'm going to need to borrow your body."

* * *

Grumbling as he stumbled slightly over a large rock, Daniel struggled a bit to keep up with the determined gaits of both Vala Mal Doran and Teal'c. They'd been walking for nearly five hours straight through the mountainous terrain of a fairly deserted planet, only once taking a break at a nearby stream. They hadn't spoken much, unless it was necessary.

Daniel was crawling out of his skin in the hostile silence. They weren't on PXY-6249 anymore. In fact, he had absolutely no idea where they were. Their captor had taken great care in protecting herself.

Back at the dome she'd allowed him another hour or so to study the wall after triggering a device near the Stargate that hummed annoyingly in the background of the white noise in his head. He'd been so distracted, he knew he wouldn't make much progress.

After ten minutes, they'd watched with hope while she'd looked on with trepidation when the Stargate activated. He and Teal'c had both known it was from the SGC, and evidently so had she, for the look in her eyes spoke of fear he hadn't expected. After little more than five seconds, it all became clear. Colonel Reynolds' voice could be heard over their radios, when the device she'd employed instantly struck the MALP in two and they heard no more.

Hours later, as they walked, Daniel pondered her reaction. When the MALP had been destroyed, she'd looked rather relieved, but still concerned. The wormhole closed without a reply from their end, and then she relaxed. Had she been worried a human would step through and be promptly obliterated? Or had she simply been relieved that they didn't have more advanced technology?

Either way, this woman was a mystery.

It was clear that Teal'c didn't trust the woman, and that the woman was weary of Teal'c. Yet here they trekked, following her to the ends of some other planet with two suns beating upon them with a fiery fury. He could feel his skin burning to an angry red, and he knew he wasn't the only one feeling the effects of the heat. His companions were just too stubborn to admit it. Not for the first time that day, he wished for Sam's seemingly endless supply of SPF 40.

"Hey, uh, guys?" Daniel panted as he waved his hand, his pride taking a backseat to his wisdom. "What say we take another break under those trees ahead?"

Vala stopped, and Teal'c instinctively stopped as well. He didn't turn to face Daniel, keeping his eyes on Vala, but Daniel didn't take it personally. It was clear Teal'c was in one of his moods. He glanced at Vala around Teal'c's shoulder and raised his eyebrows as sweat threatened to sting his eyes – again. "So? A break sound good?"

Vala squinted in the sun and in scrutiny before she finally nodded. "As you wish. We shall take a small respite."

Daniel smiled. "Great!" Renewed with energy at the prospect of getting a break, he forged on to catch up with Teal'c. "So, this planet has long days, eh?"

"Yes," Vala answered. "The first sun rises in the early light from the mountains, and begins to set midday, at which point the second sun joins it from the wetlands. The two remain high in the sky during the period we call 'firelight.' Afterwards, the two suns continue their setting for a period we call 'half light.'"

Intrigued by this new bit of information, Daniel made a show of glancing around them at the deserted land, before he turned back to Vala. "Uh… 'we?'"

"We're going to my village, to my people," Vala offered by way of explanation. "A plague has afflicted many, and I need your help in translating an attacker's weapon and belongings, so our healers can determine a cure or treatment for the disease." Then, much quieter, she said, "It's time I did something right for them."

This time, Teal'c glanced back at Daniel, willing to acknowledge that nugget of information. Daniel merely shrugged, opting to remain open-minded for the sake of getting back to the SGC.

"It should not be much longer now," she called back to them, as she leaned against a thick tree with aqua leaves. "But for now, we may rest."

Helping himself to a large rock, Daniel stretched his legs out in front of him and exhaled. It's not that he wasn't used to the strenuous activity. SG-1's regimen had always been intense, and their workouts in between missions helped keep them up to par. The sun, however, seemed to penetrate his skin and clothes and rest upon his bones and muscles with a heaviness he'd never really felt before. This whole planet spoke of desolation and desertion. The very fact that the Stargate was easily two hundred or so miles away from civilization spoke of how guarded these people wished to be.

Now the question was, how did this Goa'uld come to live with them and empathize with their plight? And how would he and Teal'c ultimately aid them? Daniel had a feeling it was going to be a lot harder than she was making it seem.

* * *

"Excuse me, Colonel Carter?"

Sam looked up from her report and smiled at the young captain in the doorway of her lab. "Hello! Come on in, Captain."

"Hello, ma'am," the young woman nodded, obviously nervous out of her mind, as she walked into the laboratory, papers in hand. "I'm very sorry to bother you, but this is Dr. Tram's proof of the replicator weapon modifications you submitted last week."

Sam smiled and nodded. "Sure. Did he have anything to suggest in terms of an alternate power source besides the one I mentioned?"

"No, ma'am," Captain Willows shook her head emphatically, horrified at the thought of having to correct Sam in some way.

"Oh, that's too bad." Sam frowned in thought, before glancing back up at the stiff captain. She smiled, fully understanding and remembering the desperate need for strict military propriety at that age, even though she'd known the officer since well before her assignment at the SGC. "Well, thank you for bringing it over. Please, do tell Dr. Tram that I'll have a revised modification on his desk by the end of the week."

"Yes, ma'am." She didn't move.

Sam chuckled, and saw the captain visibly relax. "You're dismissed, Captain. Have a good day."

"Thank you, ma'am. You too, ma'am."

And with that, she was gone.

Sam glanced back at the modifications she'd submitted for Dr. Tram's review. Though she had the ultimate say in what would be implemented with the Asgard retro-engineered technology, she still liked getting the perspective of her colleagues. Most of the time, it tended to be the outside influence of one who wasn't in the field that helped her come to a sound conclusion that would be beneficial for everyone.

Suddenly, something in the report caught her eye. Briefly, she remembered suggesting a sort of battery pack for the modified replicator weapons, in the event that one had to be re-charged during a long mission. While the weapons worked like a zat in terms of energy retention, they weren't self-charging.

The replicators had all been extinguished as far as the SGC was concerned, yet her push to hone a weapon "just in case" had not been met with opposition in the slightest. In fact, General Landry and the Joint Chiefs had insisted on some kind of timetable for such a weapon. She'd decided not to ask any questions on the off-chance they were all just being blindly charitable.

But it was the optional battery pack that got Sam to thinking… There was something about the amount of energy required to sustain any sort of chargeable device. For one thing, according to their findings, something akin to a ZPM would be required. But a ZPM was hardly transferable or discreet. And the schematics of such a device looked more along the lines of a power crystal than anything else.

Odd.

"Think, think," she whispered to herself. "Think, Carter. There's significance here. You just have to think."

"Well, if you're having such a hard time, maybe some lunch is in order."

Sam's head shot up at the familiar voice, all thoughts of the device gone as she made eye contact with Dr. Janet Fraiser. Shock exploded through her veins, leaving Sam struggling to figure out why. Janet always came down around 1300 to have lunch. The timing was always perfect for both of their schedules. The commissary was always quieter. And it wasn't anything new.

So why did she suddenly feel so devastated?


End file.
